HEALTHFUL 
SPORTS 



FOR 



BOYS 




Class; ^^ftZOl 
Book __ ' -0 / ^ 
GopyrightN" 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSm 






Copyright, 1910, by 

THE CHRISTIAN HERALD 
NEW YORK 



©CI.A:e78193 



^ 



r^ 



Healthful Sports 
for Boys 



Contents 

SPRING 
CHAPTER I 

MARBLES — HOW PLAYED 

Marbles: Where and how made; different 
games; terms of game; how to gain skill. 

CHAPTER II 

WHIP TOPS AND TOP GAMES 

Whip tops, peg tops, and some other tops; how 
they are played; top games. 

CHAPTER III 

KITES AND HOW MADE 

About kites ; how made ; their practical uses ; 
flying contests. 

CHAPTER IV 

HOOPS, WHEELS AND BUZZERS 

Hoops, wheels and buzzers ; stilts, different 
kinds ; how used and how procured. 

V 



vi CONTENTS 

CHAPTER V 

let's go a-fishing 

"Let's go a-fishing" ; bait of many kinds and 
how to get it. Fishing outfit; its care. 



SUMMER 
CHAPTER VI 

BOATING AND CANOEING 

Useful hints on boating and canoeing. "Don'ts" 
to be observed. Definitions. 

CHAPTER Vn 

SMALL SAIL BOATS 

How to make and manage small sail boats. 
CHAPTER Vni 

HOW TO SWIM 

Can you swim? How to learn. Confidence. 
CHAPTER IX 

STYLES OF SWIMMING 

Styles of swimming; floating, diving; water 
games. 

CHAPTER X 

THINGS BOYS SHOULD KNOW 

How sides are chosen in games of contest; 
some things all boys should know. 



CONTENTS vii 

CHAPTER XI 

CURIOUS RHYMES FOR GAMES 

Curious rhymes in counting out games. 
CHAPTER XH 

TAG AND BULL IN THE RING 

All about the good old game of tag, and bull 
in the ring. 

CHAPTER Xni 

ALL ABOUT LEAP FROG 

Do you know all about leap frog? 
CHAPTER XIV 

DUCK ON THE ROCK — CAT 

Dead Turtle; Duck on Rock; Brick Skittles; 
Tip Cat; Country Cat; American Cat. 

CHAPTER XV 

BALL, BAT AND RACKET 

And now for ball! Seme good games that can 
be played with ball, bai and racket. Town ball; 
two old cats; hand ball. 

CHAPTER XVI 

AMERICAN BASEBALL 

The great American game of baseball. Some 
things every player should know. Rules. 



viii CONTENTS 

AUTUMN 
CHAPTER XVII 

ALL ABOUT FOOTBALL 

The strenuous game of football. How to lay- 
out the ground. Pointers for players. 

CHAPTER XVIII 

MUMBLY PEG — HOP SCOTCH 

Mumbly peg; jackstones; Hop Scotch. 
CHAPTER XIX 

HOW TO CAMP OUT 

How and where to prepare camp. A delightful 
way in which to spend a vacation, if you know 
the way. 

CHAPTER XX 

BICYCLES AND LASSOES 

Can you ride a bike? Information on wheels. 
How to throw a lariat. 

CHAPTER XXI 



GOLF, HOCKEY AND SHINNY 

The old Scotch game of golf, hockey and 
shinny. 



CONTENTS ix 

WINTER 
CHAPTER XXII 

SKATING — SKIING — SNOW SHOEING 

On the ice and snow. The royal sport of skat- 
ing. Some hints on skiing and snow shoes. 

CHAPTER XXIII 

COASTING — ^TOBOGGANING — SLEDS 

Coasting. How to make sleds. The bob sled. 
The toboggan. Snow games. 

CHAPTER XXIV 

GENERAL ATHLETICS 

Walking, Running, Jumping. 
CHAPTER XXV 

CRIES— SHOUTS — COLLEGE YELLS 

Battle cries, hailing shouts, and college yells. 
CHAPTER XXVI 

CLEVER TRICKS 

Vanishing feats. Curious illusions. Various 
deceptive amusements. 

CHAPTER XXVII 

SLEIGHT-OF-HAND 

Balancing. Juggling. Transformations. 



Introduction 

Among the many good and wise things 
said by the great Lincoln was this : "Give 
me the boy with promise of the man in him, 
and give me the man with the memory of 
the boy in him, and both can sit at my 
table, and if they sit together, we'll have 
all the better time !" 

This book of out-door games for boys 
will make better boys, and they'll get a lot 
more joy out of life and be the better men 
in time, for having read it and carried out 
its rules as to wholesome, honest sport. 

The boy who plays an honest game will 
do an honest business, and he'll win over 
"the sneak." 

If you are "a grown-up," read this book,, 
and in doing so live over again the joyous, 
gladsome days of your boyhood, and yoti 
will sigh, as we do while writing this: 
"Would I were a boy again!" 

We want the mother, as well as the 
father, to read this book, for it will recall 
the brothers of far-off days, and bring her 
into closer sympathy — we must not say 



:jdi INTRODUCTION 

"love," for that is already strong enough — 
with the exuberance of her boys. 

And the girls? Why, bless you! They, 
too, should read every scrap of this book, 
for they will find in it many of their own 
games, and not one that they could not 
play and enjoy, if circumstances permitted. 

And the grand-parents ? God bless them ! 
Why, they'll enjoy it quite as much as the 
young folks. 



spring 



Healthful Sports 
for Boys 



CHAPTER I 

marbles: where made; terms of the 

GAMES ; different games ; HOW TO 
acquire SKILL 

Each season has its own particular work 
for the farmer, and he does his work with- 
out direction from or consultation with his 
neighbors or any one else. Each season 
has its own particular games for the young 
folks, and they take to them without any 
suggestion from outsiders, just as young 
ducks take to water, without any instruc- 
tions from the mother bird. The seasons 
in the south temperate zone are just the 
opposite to those in the north. Some years 
ago I spent the months of July and August 
in New Zealand, and great was my sur- 
prise to find the boys down at Dunedin 
1 



2 MARBLES 

snowballing on the Fourth of July, while 
the sleigh-bells made music through the 
streets. In the following October, which is 
the spring month in Victoria, Australia, I 
found the youngsters of Melbourne play- 
ing marbles, just as the boys in New York 
had been doing when I left it the previous 
May. 

MARBLES 

We have reason to believe that the 
first marbles were fashioned from pebbles 
on the ocean's shore, or ground into round- 
ness by the action of river currents. We do 
not know when or where marbles origi- 
nated, but of the antiquity of the game we 
are very sure. Egyptian boys played mar- 
bles before the days of Moses, and marbles 
are among the treasures found buried in the 
ruins of Pompeii, which you will remem- 
ber was destroyed by an eruption of lava 
from Vesuvius in the first century of the 
Christian era. To-day marbles are played 
in every civilized land under the sun, and 
with slight differences, the method of 
shooting and the games are practically the 
same. 

Germans are the greatest toy and game- 
makers in the world, and so we should not 
be surprised to learn that that great coun- 
try not only produces the most marbles, but 
also the very best. From Germany we get 



MARBLES 3 

the finest "agates," the beauty and value 
of which every lover of the game knows. 
The more common marbles are made in 
Saxony, of a fine kind of white limestone, 
which is practically a variety of the build- 
ing material known as "marble,'* and from 
w^hich the name is derived. Broken into 
small pieces, and the irregular bits placed 
between two grooved grinders, the lower 
one being stone and the upper wood, power 
is applied, and after much rotating the 
spheres are turned out, hundreds at a time, 
and these are afterwards sorted and pol- 
ished. 

Glass marbles, some of which are imi- 
tation agates, are cast in moulds that close 
so perfectly that the place where they join 
cannot be seen in the finished product. 
China marbles are made from pottery-clay, 
and after being joined are baked, and some- 
times they are painted. The small gray, 
brown or black marbles, usually called 
"commies," are little balls of clay, baked 
and glazed. These, being the cheapest, are 
the most numerous, and are usually the 
objects of attack, and so change owners the 
oftenest. 

NAMES OF MARBLES AND PLAY TERMS 

While the names of marbles and the 
terms of the game may vary slightly in dif- 



4 MARBLES 

ferent parts of the United States, they are 
in the main so much alike that the follow- 
ing will be understood by all boys through- 
out the land : 

The Taw or Shooter is the marble used 
for shooting. 

The TcEw Line, or Scratch, is a line 
drawn for a starting point in the game. 

Ducks are marbles to be shot at. 

Dubs, an abbreviation of "doubles," 
means that you get all the marbles knocked 
out with one shot. 

Fen Dubs, an abbreviation of "defend 
doubles," is shouted by an opponent before 
the play, and means that you must put back 
all but one marble. 

Lofting means shooting through the air, 
so that your taw does not touch the earth 
till it hits the object aimed at or a point 
near it. 

Knuckling Down means resting the 
knuckles on the ground while shooting. 

Histing or Hoisting is holding some dis- 
tance above the ground. It is not permit- 
ted in Bull Ring or in Meg-on-a-string. 

Roundsters means taking a new position 
to avoid an obstruction. It is not allowed 
in Bull Ring. 

Sidings means moving your taw from 
one side to the other in a straight line when 
about to shoot. It is barred in Bull Ring. 

Burying is w^hen the taw, if in a good 



MARBLES 5 

spot, is forced into the ground with the 
heel of the shoe. This is seldom allowed; 
"Fen buryings" being the accepted law of 
experts. 

Laying means placing the marbles in the 
ring. 

Clearances means the removal of all ob- 
structions between the players and the 
ducks. 

Sneaking means shooting for a position. 

Babying is shooting so as not to send 
the taw too far. Good players often do 
this so as to secure a position from which 
they can ''skin the ring.*' 

Dabsters are little squares of cloth or 
skin laid under the knuckles when playing 
to keep them from being cut by constant 
contact with the hard ground. 

Marble Bag saves pockets and explains 
itself. 

According to quality, marbles are known 
as "agates," "crystals," "chinas," "alleys," 
"potteries," and "commies," or the cheap- 
est and least prized. 

The three great essentials of the game 
are the boys, the marbles, and suitable 
ground. 

The marble is shot from the hollow of 
the crooked index finger, and projected by 
the thumb. Good shooting is often done in 
this way, but the most expert shots place 
the marble on the point of the index fin- 



6 MARBLES 

ger, and project it with a firmer grip of 
the thumb. This method is more difficult 
to acquire, but it pays as does everything 
that requires practice and effort. A good 
player, as in billiards, can make his taw- 
carom for position, or he can make it re- 
main stationary, while the marble struck 
shoots away in a straight line. 

SOME GOOD GAMES 

A boy can practice the above, and I 
would advise him to do so, but it takes at 
least two boys to make a game — just as it 
takes two to make a quarrel, and you must 
never be one of the latter. Just here let me 
say that the boy who loses his tem^per, or 
who has not the manhood to accept defeat 
in the right spirit, does not make a desir- 
able friend or playmate, for if he cannot 
conquer himself he is unfit to contest in 
the sports of youth or in the business of 
maturer years. 

FAT 

Fat is one of our oldest and simplest 
marble games. It is played in this way: 
Make a ring eighteen inches or two feet 
in diameter ; ten feet back draw or scratch 
a taw line to shoot from. If four boys are 
playing, each places a marble, as indicated, 
or if there are more players the marbles 



MARBLES 7 

are placed at equal distances about the ring. 
The order of the play having been decided 
on, by shooting or rolling towards the taw 
line, the nearness to which decides the 
question, number one shoots for the ring, 
and if he knocks out a marble, he shoots 
again from where his taw rests, and so 
keeps on until he has missed. Number two 
knuckles down at the taw line and shoots,, 
as did number one. If the first taw is with- 
in range, he can shoot at that, and if he 
hits it, then number one must hand num- 
ber two all the ducks he has knocked from 
the ring. If number two can hit number 
one's taw again, then number one is killed,, 
and must retire from that game. 

When number two misses, the next in 
order shoots, either at the ring or at the 
line taw, and so the game proceeds till all 
the marbles are knocked out, or all but the 
last player are killed. In the second game, 
the first man killed is the last to shoot, and. 
so they take turns in the order of their de~ 
feat. This game is the more fascinating for 
its uncertainty, for often the last player 
knocks out the taw of one who so far has 
been getting all the ducks, and he gets 
credit for his score. 

FOLLOWINGS 

can hardly be called a game. It is played 
by two boys — usually when they have 



8 MARBLES 

more important business on hand; the first 
boy shoots in the direction both are trav- 
ehng; the second follows, and whenever 
one chances to be hit it counts one for the 
shooter. 

KNUCKS 

In this game, one boy, called "Knucks," 
takes a small marble between his knuckles, 
then places the clenched hand on the 
ground. The other player knuckles 
down at the taw line, four or five feet 
away, and shoots — he must not roll — at the 
marble held by the other. Every time 
the *'Knucks" marble is hit, it counts one 
for the shooter; each time he misses in the 
three shots, it counts an additional shot 
for "Knucks" when it comes his turn. 

THE LONG RING 

About eight or nine feet from the taw 
Hne make an elongated ring, composed of 
two sections of a circle, crossing each other. 
Draw a circle down the center of the long 
ring, and on this place the marbles. If 
there are only two players, then each lays 
a duck at the intersection of the curves. 
Each additional player adds a duck to the 
line. 

Where there are only two players, the 
first is sure to "sneak," that is, to roll his 



MARBLES 9 

taw so that it will rest near one of the mar- 
bles in the ring. If number two hits num- 
ber one, and so kills him, he wins the game, 
but if there are more than two in the game, 
number one is put out. Number two has 
another shot, from the place where his taw 
rests, at the ducks in the ring, and he keeps 
on till he misses. So the game is kept up 
till all the ducks are knocked from the ring. 
If it is agreed in advance, each player may 
lay more than one duck in the ring. In 
this game the killed are not dead, if there 
are more than two players. They can play 
when the turn comes, but it must always 
be from the taw line. 

THE BULL RING 

This is one of the oldest and best 
games. The ring should be from four 
to ten feet in diameter. The ducks 
are placed in the form of a cross, in 
the middle of the ring, the number each is 
to "whack up" being agreed upon in ad- 
vance. The order of play is usually de- 
cided on by knuckling down and rolling for 
the opposite side of the ring. The first 
player "lofts" at the ducks. He must drive 
the marble outside the ring for a win. If 
his own taw goes outside, the successful 
player can come back to the ring edge for 
his next shot. If it is a miss and the taw 
goes outside the ring, it must be replaced 



10 MARBLES 

inside at the point of exit. When a taw is 
struck the owner is "dead" for that game, 
and the successful player keeps on shoot- 
ing till he misses. 

When two or more ducks are knocked 
out of the ring, the player is entitled to 
raise his score by that number, provided he 
shouts "Dubs" before the others cry "Fen 
dubs/' If a player is caught "hunching," 
that is, pushing his fist beyond the line 
while shooting, and makes a hit, he must 
replace the marble and shoot over again. 
^'Histings" and the use of "bowlers" are 
barred in the bull ring. 

"Sneaking," that is, shooting the taw so 
that it will rest near the middle of the 
ring, is allowed. If this taw is not hit, it 
may be able to skin the ring when its turn 
comes. A dead man, when his turn comes, 
and there are enough ducks remaining to 
warrant the risk, may re-enter the game by 
placing in the ring twice as many marbles 
as were at first required, and an additional 
duck near the edge of the ring; on this 
duck he caroms so as to send it out, then 
if his taw is in a good place, he may come 
out ahead. 

DUCK-IN-A-HOLE 

Make three shallow holes, and about ten 
feet away draw the taw line. The holes 



MARBLES 11 

are three feet apart. The object of 
each player is to shoot his taw so that 
it will enter and stay in the first hole. 
If he succeeds, he is allowed to place his 
thumb on the far edge of the first hole, and 
using his hand as a pair of dinders, by a 
twist of the wrist he marks with his longest 
finger a curved line on the ground. This 
is called "taking a span." From the span 
line he shoots at the second hole, and if 
successful continues on to the third. If 
this is won, he takes a span backward for 
the middle hole. If he reaches the first 
hole, he repeats it over, but this time he is 
entitled to two spans. The third time, if 
there is no miss, he can take three spans, 
and if he succeeds, he becomes a "King 
Duck," and takes four spans. 

If the first player misses, and the second 
player rolls into the first hole, he takes a 
span and shoots — if it is near — at the first 
taw, and if he hits, he can place his taw in 
the second hole, and so on till he misses. 
When number one's turn comes, he must 
shoot from the spot where his taw rests. 

In this game the first king has a great ad- 
vantage because of his four spans. Each 
time a player hits another, he scores one 
point, and the hit loses one. By the time 
all have become King Ducks the game is 
over, or it may be decided in advance that 



12 MARBLES 

when one has made five or ten points, the 
game shall end. 

MEG-IN-A-HOLE 

differs from the foregoing game, in the 
fact that there is no taw line. The player 
shoots from one end at the middle hole. 
If he succeeds, he is entitled to a span, 
and he keeps on as before till he be- 
comes a king. Before this, he can take 
but one span in any direction, but as 
a king, he can take one foot measure — his 
own foot — and a span from the first hole; 
two feet and a span from the second hole, 
and three feet and a span from the third 
hole. This gives him a great advantage, 
and if there is no rival king he is "Mon- 
arch of all he surveys." If there is a sec- 
ond king, the first one assigns him the first 
hole to guard, because from this he can 
take only one foot and a span. When all 
become kings, or the points agreed on are 
won, the game is over. 

SQUARE RING 

A "Square Ring" sounds odd, but such 
things go in playingi marbles. The square 
may be of any size, but four feet is the 
best. The taw line must be from twenty 
to thirty feet away. Before a player can 



MARBLES 13 

win the game he must first kill all the oth- 
ers. Perhaps that is why it is sometimes 
called 'Injun." 

The first player is at a great disadvan- 
tage, for if he knocks out a duck he must 
replace it, and if his taw stops inside the 
ring he has killed himself, and is out of the 
game. The best way is not to knuckle 
down but to toss for a good position near 
the ring. The second player, for obvious 
reasons, must keep away as far as possible 
from the first, so he shoots through the 
ring with force, hoping to get a duck on 
the way, for he does not have to replace 
it. He can take the duck back to taw 
and holding it in his left hand shoot at it 
so as to send his own taw close to number 
one, which he can then kill. 

If number two misses, number three 
pitches his marble off to one side, and so 
the game goes on, each player guarding his 
own taw and trying to kill his rivals. 
Knocking out ducks gives the privilege just 
described, after which the duck is replaced. 



CHAPTER II 

WHIP TOPS, PEG TOPS, HUMMING TOPS AND 
SOME TOP GAMES 

Why it happens, no one knows, not even 
the boys themselves, but that it does hap- 
pen we all know. Tops come in when the 
marble game is in full blast, and gradually 
it drives out, till another spring, its be- 
loved rival. Tops are of great antiquity, 
and the Chinese and their neighbors, the 
Japanese, are famous for the variety of 
their tops. I have seen adults in those 
countries enjoying the game with all the 
zest of American boys in springtime. 

It is a good idea for boys, where they 
have any facilities for so doing, to make 
their own play tools. In the old days, they 
whittled out tops, but it hardly pays to do 
so to-day when well-shaped spinners can 
be had in every toy shop at a very low 
price. However, good little tops can be 
made from the wooden spools on which 
sewing thread comes. Two tops, that will 
amuse the younger children, can be made 
14 



TOPS 15 

from each spool, by whittling down from 
the rims to the middle of the spool till the 
parts break at the opening. A peg driven 
through answers for a spindle. These can 
be made in a few minutes, and may afford 
some fun for a winter evening. 

WHIP TOPS 

If not the very oldest, these tops are cer- 
tainly the most widely distributed. If a 
good whip top cannot be bought, a 
first-rate article can be made from a sec- 
tion of a rounded timber, either natural 
or turned. It may be of any size, but 
from two to three inches in diameter, and 
about a half inch or more in length is the 
best. Whittle this, with care, to a blunt 
point, into which drive a smooth-headed 
tack, and there you are. With colored 
crayons, or paint, the top may be deco- 
rated, so as to add to its effect when spin- 
ning. 

Tough rags, or leather thongs fastened 
to a handle about a foot in length, will 
make an effective lash, but the best whips 
are made from pliant leather thongs, or still 
better, from a dried eelskin. 

To spin the top, put your whip under 
your left arm — I have seen boys grasp it 
between their teeth — then with the flat of 
the fingers of both hands on either side of 



16 TOPS 

the top, give a smart twirl. As soon as the 
top is in motion, ply your whip along the 
sides, drawing the lash quickly away at 
each stroke. 

Playing whip-top alone soon gets to be 
monotonous, but where there are two a 
*'fight" can be arranged for. At the word 
*'go," two boys spin their tops, and then 
lash them till they crash together. The 
tops must be kept within a described ring, 
and the one that knocks the other out is 
regarded as the King top. If a boy strikes 
his opponent's top, it is a "foul," and he 
loses the game. Another contest is where, 
after the lashing, one calls "stop." The 
one that "dies" first, is naturally out. 

Racing is done by drawing a taw line, 
from which the whip tops start for a desig- 
nated goal, the first one in winning. This 
is an exciting game and not so easy as at 
first appears. 

The tin or wooden humming top is but 
an interesting toy. The Japanese make them 
with a slit in the point which fits into a 
string or a thin wire, and on such sup- 
ports they can be made to do remarkable 
feats. 

THE PEG TOP 

The Peg Top is, after all, the King of 
the top family, and the greatest source of 
joy to the youth with a sure eye and a 



TOPS 17 

steady hand. The "Plugger" is the top you 
spin; the "bait" is the top you strike with 
the plugger. A "Giggler" is an unsteady 
top that goes dancing and hopping about. 
Boys love their "old reliable taw" in mar- 
bles, but their pride in this is never so 
great as that which they take in a con- 
quering plugger. This should have what 
is known as a screw peg, which prevents 
splitting. It can be made, but on the whole, 
I think it better to buy the pegs. 

A good, stout, pliant cord is quite as nec- 
essary as a well-balanced top. It should 
have a button, never a loop, to keep it from 
slipping through the fingers, and it should 
be of a thickness to fill, without overlapping 
the grooves. The end should be frayed 
and moistened to insure a firm grip when 
starting to wind. It requires much prac- 
tice to become expert in spinning the peg, 
but, as in everything else, it pays to learn 
accuracy. 

As with whip top, playing alone soon 
ceases to be good fun, but the game makes 
for enjoyment. Mark out a bull ring about 
six feet in diameter. Put as many tops in- 
side the small ring as there are players, 
then toss up, or in any other way decide on 
the order of play. After winding up his 
peg, the first player, with his left foot toe- 
ing the outer ring, strikes for the tops in 
the center. If he misses and fails to spin. 



18 TOPS 

or if he strikes outside the inner circle, he 
must put another top within the circle and 
await his turn. If he strikes the tops with 
the big end of his plugger, it is a miss, and 
he must replace any top knocked out; but 
if the peg of the plugger hits a top and 
knocks it out of the center ring, he pockets 
it and has another whack. If in spinning 
in the center ring the plugger jostles out 
a top or tops, it counts as a hit, and the 
player is entitled to another "try." If the 
plugger spins and dies in the ring without 
knocking out a top, it is a miss, and the 
player must add another top. 

Sometimes a crack player throws witli 
such force and accuracy as to split a bait' 
top. This is the acme of the game and the 
crowning glory of the player. Often the 
bait consists of toothless, battered wrecks, 
but this does not lessen the fun of the 
game. 



CHAPTER III 
kites: where found; how made; their 

PRACTICAL uses; CLOSELY RELATED 
TO AEROPLANES — A GREAT SPORT 

Spring winds favor kite flying. This is 
another world-wide sport, and it was popu- 
lar with old and young in China — the land 
of the kite — at the time when the Egyp- 
tians were cutting stones for the pyramids. 
Everybody knows, or should know, what 
the great Ben. Franklin did by means of a 
kite, though the kite through which he 
learned the nature of lightning was of a 
model that is not often seen at this time. 
This was the old bow kite, the kind that 
every beginner learns to make, and which 
needs no detailed description here. 

The hexagonal or coffin-shaped kite is 
more reliable than the old sort, and is quite 
as cheap and as easily made. Kites of both 
these kinds have been used to get a line 
from a stranded vessel to the shore, and 
engineers have used them. They did it 
when the first suspension bridge was built 

19 



20 KITES 

at Niagara, to get a line across the chasm, 
which gradually grew into the great sus- 
pending cables. 

Kites have been used to draw light ve- 
hicles over smooth ground, and they make 
good sport when made to draw sleds over 
the ice, or as "top-loftical" sails for small 
boats. I have seen in New York a tan- 
dem team of ten kites used for advertising 
purposes. 

The Star Kite is easily made and is well 
worth doing. Get three sticks or sections 
of light string, both of equal length. These 
are fastened in the center, so that, with the 
ends of the sticks equal distances apart, 
they will form a six-pointed star. The cov- 
ering should be of thin, close cotton cloth, 
or, better still, of light, strong paper, which 
must be pasted so as to present the side of 
greatest resistance to the wind, else it will 
soon be blown off. The tail band is simply 
a loop fastened to the sticks at the bottom 
so that it will hang below the kite, and bal- 
ance it when it ascends. The belly-bands 
for support and steering — in the latter case 
two lines are used — must never be attached 
below the central cross-piece. 

Boys often find fun in sending "messen- 
gers" up the strings to the kites. After 
the kite is up a good height, round pieces 
of colored paper with a hole in the center 
and a slit by means of which they are 



KITES 21 

slipped on the string, are sent up. They 
travel with the speed of the wind till they 
reach the kite, where they stop. If too 
heavy, or too many, the messengers may 
get the kite out of balance. 

A messenger has been sent up 6,000 feet, 
or over one mile. That is the height to 
which American scientists have sent kites 
with thermometers and barometers at- 
tached, so as to record the elevation and 
the temperature. 

THE HARGRAVE_, OR BOX KITE, 

is something new and hitherto unheard of in 
the kite line. Rigidity and strength, without 
too much weight, are the prime essentials 
of the Hargrave. It may be made by a boy 
with a knack for mechanics in the follow- 
ing way: Take eight stiff, slender pieces 
of bamboo, eighteen and three-quarter 
inches in length, such as are sometimes 
used for fishing poles. These pieces must 
be of uniform weight and length, and as 
nearly alike as possible. Next cut six sticks, 
each eleven inches long, and as nearly alike 
as possible. These are for the middle up- 
rights and end stretchers. After finding 
the middle of the longer sticks, lash them 
together in pairs by means of stout waxed 
thread, or light brass wire. Notch the 
ends of the sticks and make the spread be- 



22 KITES 

tween A and C just eleven inches. This 
will give you four pairs of crossed sticks. 
Next take one of your eleven-inch uprights, 
and bind it to the two pairs of cross-sticks. 
Take the other eleven-inch upright and fas- 
ten the other two pairs of cross-sticks in 
the same way. 

This done, cut two spines, or connecting 
rods of bamboo, each thirty inches long and 
as nearly alike as possible. Next, with 
waxed thread, or Hght wire, bind the two 
spines over the ends of the eleven-inch 
stretchers. The spine must fit like the top 
of a letter T over the stretchers and be 
square; that is, at right angles with the 
stretcher. Each end of the spine must pro- 
ject beyond the uprights five and one-half 
inches; that is, the ends must each be five 
and one-half inches long, which leaves nine- 
teen inches between points named. Bind 
the other four stretchers to the ends of the 
sticks. Now string the frame so that all 
the sticks, except the diagonals, shall be 
at right angles, or ''perfectly square," as 
boys say. This done, paint all the joints 
with glue. 

The frame when finished should measure 
II X II X 30. This is the measure for each 
of the two boxes or cells, which should have 
eight inches between. Cover the frame 
with a strong, light cloth that will not 
stretch, and sew it on so as to form two 



KITES 23 

boxes covered at the top, bottom and ends. 
The two broadsides of each one are left 
open to receive the wind. On the bottom 
boom, at or near the edge of the cloth 
cover, fasten a small brass ring for a belly- 
band. If the foregoing be well done, you 
will have a kite on the principle of a fly- 
ing machine, and you will be up with the 
times. 

Kite String must be considered. In a 
light wind and with an ordinary kite, good, 
strong twine answers all purposes, but with 
large kites and a stiff breeze, the best 
string is a twisted linen line. Learn how 
to tie knots that won't come undone, and 
take care not to cut or blister your hands 
in letting out or hauling in. 

TAILLESS KITES 



are fast superceding the old-time kind, and 
they are quite as easy to make and are 
much easier to manage. Here are direc- 
tions for making it: They can be made 
in different sizes and flied tandem, from 
twenty to hundreds of feet apart. The 
longitudinal stick should be of strong" 
spruce, sixty inches in length and 
about three-eighths or one-half inch in 
width and thickness. It can be of any size, 
if these proportions are mamtained. The 
cross-piece should be a similar stick and of 



24 KITES 

equal length. When in position it is slightly 
bent, say four per cent, of its length. The 
frame should be of light spruce, the same 
size as the cross-pieces. Care must be taken 
to have the angles right. When the frame 
is finished, cover loosely with manila paper, 
so that there will be some concavity on the 
face of the kite on each side below the cross- 
stick, so that it will belly like a sail; bind 
the edges with thin wire which stretches 
less than string. This kite will fly in a 
very light breeze. The string, particularly 
if you have a tandem, should be flexible and 
strong. In a stiff breeze, and with more 
than one kite, it is well to have a reel, as 
in a fishing rod, for hauling in. 

The best way with tandem kites is not, 
as is usually done, to fasten one kite be- 
hind the other on the same string, but to 
hitch each kite by means of a separate 
string to the main cord. The tail kite will 
do for tandem, but as the tails are apt to 
get snarled, it is not so desirable as the 
tailless kind. 

THE BARREL KITE 

As the bird and the butterfly kites of 
the Chinese can be bought at a low 
price, I shall not attempt a description 
of them here, but the barrel kite, which 
is distinctly American, cannot be ignored. 



KITES 25 

This kite was tried some years ago by 
the U. S. Weather Bureau officers in 
California. It is cylindrical in form, 
about four feet long, and two feet in diam- 
eter. The frame is made up of four light 
hoops, braced together by four or more 
thin strips of wood. The twelve-inch 
space between the pair of hoops at eithef 
end is covered with a collar of paper, and 
the string, by which the kite is held, is 
attached to a stick, which passes diagon- 
ally through the inside of the cylinder from 
end to end. When this kite catches the 
wind it lifts quickly and gracefully.^ As it 
is easily made, I should Hke some of my 
young readers to try it. 

I have not seen a barrel kite in a tandem, 
but I can't see why it should not work. Be- 
tween kites on a tandem line, flags of same 
size, and of any designs that may be 
thought of, may be strung with good ef- 
fect. 



CHAPTER IV 

SOME OTHER SPRING AMUSEMENTS, NOT 
FORGETTING STILTS 

It is said that hoops are loosing their 
popularity, but be that as it may, I am very 
sure they will never go out of fashion with 
the young folk who delight in a good out- 
door run, while at the same time they find 
work for the eyes and the hand. 

Neat iron hoops, with a crooked iron 
hook to propel, I find much in use, but — 
and it may be because I am a bit old-fash- 
ioned — I much prefer the well-made, wood- 
en hoop with a wooden stick. Why, I've 
had no end of fun with a wooden barrel 
hoop, but I could never make the iron bar- 
rel hoop respond to my urging. 

Some makers have attached bells and 
other jinglers to hoops, but no boy fit to 
wear boots cares for these baby contriv- 
ances. Small light wheels — they can be 
had from a retired baby carriage — are ex- 
cellent things to trundle, and some of them 
require more skill than does a hoop. Even 
26 



HOOPS AND STILTS 3T 

tin-can covers or the top of a blacking box 
may be made to afford fun and test skill. 
When I was a boy, and I am sure boys 
do so still, we used to make buzz wheels 
out of circular tincan tops. Two holes, 
about an inch apart, were cut near the cen- 
ter of the tin. Through both openings a 
string was passed and the ends tied. By 
trowling, the strings — its ends were held 
one in each hand — are made to twist. When 
tight enough, the ends are drawn, and the 
buzzer starts off with such force that it 
half winds itself up on the other start. 

THE SUCKER 

is a good philosophical toy, for it illus- 
trates air pressure and affords some fun. 
If you don't know how to make one, this 
is the way : Get a piece of thin sole leath- 
er, about four inches square. Trim off the 
corners till the shape is nearly round ; next 
lay the leather on a flat substance and 
bevel off the edges until they are as thin 
as you can make them. 

Now, without cutting through to the un- 
der side, cut a hole through the top of the 
leather, just large enough to force the end 
of a strong string through. Before using, 
soak the leather till it is soft. Next find 
quite a flat stone or brick, force the sucker 
to the top with your foot, taking care that 



28 HOOPS AND STILTS 

there is no turned edge, then you can walk 
off with that stone, forgetting that it is not 
the stick of the sucker, but the air pressure 
— some fifteen pounds to the square inch — ■ 
that holds the two together. 

STILTS 

are as old and as world-wide in their 
use as marbles, tops and kites. These 
are the things that set the boy up in the 
world without making him too proud. The 
first stilts I ever used — I was brought up 
on a farm — I cut "with my little hatchet.'' 
They were made from two beech saplings, 
with the section of a branch retained at 
the same height on each for foot rests, and 
the length sufficient to come under the arms 
and be easily grasped. These were rude 
makeshifts, but they did to start with, and 
on them I learned to balance. 

Much better stilts can be made from 
sticks or board strips, of sufficient length 
for grasping with the hands, and with 
foot rests nailed at any required height 
from the ground part. In the "Gadabout" 
stilt you will notice that the stilt above the 
foot rest is strapped to the leg, just below 
the knee, which leaves both hands free. 
Any boy with tools, timber and leather for 
straps can make "Gadabouts," and the arm 
stilt is still simpler. 



HOOPS AND STILTS 29 

The natives of the Marquesas Islands use 
very high stilts, and they become so expert 
in their use as to dance with them and to 
wear them in wrestling matches. The 
shepherds on the flat plams in the south 
of France use stilts to enable them to look 
over a wide stretch of country, and they 
become so expert in their use that they 
can travel twice as fast as an ordinary 
walker on foot. They carry a long pole 
for balancing purposes and to take sound- 
ings when wading through bog or water. 

SPANISH STILTS 

differ from the "Gadabouts*' in that they 
reach to the hips, and are strapped securely 
about the thighs. These can be made at 
home, but it requires much practice to be- 
come expert. 



CHAPTER V 

LET^S GO A-FISHING SOMETHING ABOUT 

BAIT 

Do not despise the earth worm. Scien- 
tists tell us that without this creature's 
work in preparing the soil, but little of the 
earth's surface would be fit for cultivation. 
To its voluntary efforts we owe our sup- 
plies of vegetable food, but not satisfied 
with this, we conscript him that he may- 
help us to catch fish. 

Some boys, and men too, make hard work 
of getting worm bait, but in this, as in 
everything else, it all depends on how one 
goes about it. 

If you are going a-fishing in the morn- 
ing, secure your bait to-night. Worms are 
nocturnal, and they come out of their holes 
at night, provided it is not too dry on top. 
The ideal time for scooping them in is 
about dusk, after a long warm rain. Get 
a lantern and with it carry your bait can 
half filled with wet moss or soft moist 
earth. You will find, if the conditions are 
30 



FISHING— BAIT 31 

right, swarms of worms along the edges of 
beaten paths, or in the short grass along- 
side. Usually the worm has one end of 
its body in a hole, and as it is very alert, 
you must catch it before it has time to think, 
perhaps I should say, to act. For this 
purpose the bait gatherers will do better 
in pairs. One holds the can and lantern, 
while the other seizes the worm. Always 
grab the worm at the place just above the 
earth. 

Worms, I mean bait worms, are not all 
of one family, nor is each family equally 
inviting to fish. The red, fat fellows never 
come amiss, but the light, flabby kind af- 
ford no great lure for even the hungriest 
sort of a fish. The worm that keeps its 
tail a-wiggling after he is on the hook, is 
just the thing. The manure worm, the 
marsh worm, and a worm found at the 
root of the sweet flag, all make good bait; 
but the best of all is the night-crawling 
earth-worm. 

ANGLE WORMS 

are best kept in a tin box in which a num- 
ber of holes are pierced to admit air, but 
they must not be so large as to let the 
worms out. Moist, but not too wet wood 
or other moss is better than earth as a nest 
for worms, if they are to be kept some time. 
Keep your bait box in a cool, damp place, 



S3 FISHING— BAIT 

and whenever you want worms, lift the 
moss and you will find the worms hang- 
ing to it. 

Soap suds or luke-warm water, if poured 
over a place where there are worms, will 
bring them to the surface. If at the same 
time you pound on the ground, it is said 
their egress will be hastened. 

SLUGS AS BAIT 

The hellgrammite, a black, ugly slug to 
be found under stones in summer streams, 
is the most tempting bait you can offer 
a black bass. After a time the hellgram- 
mite comes to the surface and takes to the 
air as a beetle, but in that state he interests 
the naturalist rather than the fisherman. 

GRUB WORMS 

are the larvae of beetles, and may be found 
about manure heaps and in rotten logs. 
They make good bait for trout, bass, perch, 
cats and other fish, and they may be kept, 
but not for long, in the manner described 
for worms. 

GENTLES, 

or the grub of the blue-bottle fly, are 
an excellent bait for trout, though they 
are not good to look at nor pleasant to 



FISHING— BAIT S3 

handle. These can be cultivated by placini^ 
offal in a tin can, and keeping it where it 
will be safe from rats or mice and inoffens- 
ive to the nostrils of passersby. In this 
the blue-bottles will lay their eggs, which 
will soon develop into gentles. They can 
be kept in a box filled with moist sand or 
bran. If kept too long they will start off 
as flies. 

THE KATYDIDS, 

which raise such a racket from the trees, 
particularly at night and after the middle 
of July, are rather hard to get, but they 
pay for the trouble, particularly if you 
want to tempt pike or pickerel. 

BLACK CRICKETS 

are always abundant in pasture fields, and 
are tempting to all kinds of fish, but par- 
ticularly to bass and trout. They should 
be kept in a roomy box with chips and 
stones to hide under at the bottom; other- 
wise, they will kill and eat each other. 

THE GRASSHOPPER 

is nearly as good as the cricket, and it is 
easily captured and kept. They will live 
for some time in a box filled with green 
grass. 



34 FISHING— BAIT 



FROGS. 



if not too large, are a standard bait for 
pike, salmon, pickerel, and bass. Frogs 
are best caught with a net, but they 
will take a small hook baited with a bit of 
red flannel, or they will bite without the 
hook. Be careful in fastening the frog to 
your hook not to injure it so that it cannot 
swim. The hook through the web of the 
hind feet, or through the skin of the back, 
is, I think, the best way. 

"live" minnow 

are easily procured, and, on the whole, 
they make the most reliable bait. A small, 
fine-meshed net, fashioned like a sieve and 
handled by two, is one of the best means 
of collecting minnows. They should be 
kept in a bucket and taken out with a 
scoop made of meshed wire, and the water 
should be frequently changed. 

CRAWFISH, 

to be found under stones in many shallow 
brooks, make a good bait. Keep them in 
a box filled with wet moss or aquatic 
plants. 

By dead bait is meant bits of pork, fresh 



FISHING— BAIT 35 

beef, or even other fish cut up into tempt- 
ing morsels for "skittering" ; that is, where 
you cast your line with a sinker, and then 
haul it in over the water, usually by lifting 
the pole, walking back, or reeling in; a 
dead frog or a dead fish is just as good as 
a live one. 

Boys, as a rule, prefer to fish with bait, 
leaving artificial flies to the seniors. Any 
small live creature will answer for bait; 
even mice have been used with good ef- 
fect, and cheese, if it can be kept on the 
hook, is eagerly swallowed, in bottom fish- 
ing, by carp and catfish. When I was a 
boy we used to string our catches, through 
the gills, on a cut switch, but if it can be 
had, a fish basket is better. 

FISHING TACKLE 

should be considered. This is of every va- 
riety, from the bent pin fastened to a string, 
and the string fastened to a stick, which 
most of us began with, up to the elaborate 
and costly rods, reels and flies of the 
wealthy sportsmen. Boys, who seldom use 
reels, will find the bamboo, which is sold 
cheap, the lightest and strongest rod for 
general use. 

Hooks are of endless size and variety, as 
are fishing lines. These must be bought 
with regard to the kind of fish they are to 



36 FISHING— BAIT 

be used on, and of these, boys on the 
ground are the best judges. But let me 
urge this : When the fishing season is over 
do not throw your pole, line and hooks care- 
lessly to one side, but clean them, wrap 
them, and put them away in safety for an- 
other season. The boy who does not take 
good care of the tools that give him pleas- 
ure is making a bad preparation for the 
serious business of life. 



Summer 



CHAPTER VI 

HINTS ABOUT BOATING AND CANOEING 

The following rhyme was thought to be 
very funny when I was a boy: 

"Mother, dear, may I go in to swim? 
Yes, my lovely daughter; 
Hang your clothes on a hickory limb, 
But don't go near the water." 

I must reserve for "Swimming" a good 
long chapter, but let me say in all serious- 
ness, before writing anything about boat- 
ing, that every boy should learn to swim 
before he undertakes to manage a boat, or 
even to handle a raft. It is surprising at 
what an early age this most essential art 
is acquired, and once learned, it is never 
forgotten. 

It is better, if you are going a-boating, 
not to wear your Sunday-go-to-meeting 
clothes. Any old clothes will do, provided 
they are not too heavy. Shoes are always 
in the way, more particularly if you should 
be sent splashing overboard. 

A bathing suit, good for a swim or a 
39 



40 BOATING AND CANOEING 

row, can be made from an old undershirt, 
with the sleeves cut short. An old pair 
of drawers, cut off at the knees and hemmed 
will do, and these can be fastened to the 
shirt by a light belt or buttons. 

Of course, in such a rig as I have de- 
scribed, you are pretty sure to get sun- 
burned to start off with, and I need not 
tell you that there is no fun about that. 
Now, if you stand the exposure' for about 
an hour and then cover up, and the next 
day try an hour and a half, and so on, the 
skin will turn at first to a light pink and 
gradually pass to a brown, without the 
slightest pain or inconvenience. Or if you 
begin by covering the exposed parts with 
sweet oil, vaseline, lard, or mutton tallow, 
without salt, you will not suffer from sun- 
burn. 

As I have said, learn to swim, but in the 
event of a capsize, even if you can swim, 
stick to your boat or canoe till help comes, 
unless you should be so close to the shore 
as to be quite sure of reaching it, and even 
then it is best to tow the boat along. 

Every canoe should be provided with 
cork life preservers. They are cheap and 
can be used as seats, if placed in the bot- 
tom. 

Every boy, whether living by an inland 
stream, where a boat can be used, or at the 



BOATING AND CANOEING 41 

seashore, should know the names of the 
different parts of boats. Here is a short 
definition of the terms that may be of 
use: 

The Bow is the front end of the boat. 

The Stern is the rear end. 

Fore'ard means toward the bow. 

Aft, toward the stern. 

The hull is the part of the boat without 
masts, spars, oars, or rigging. 

The keel, like the runner of a skate, runs 
along the center of the bottom of the boat. 
It keeps a boat under sail from sliding side- 
ways. 

Starboard is the right-hand side of the 
boat as you face the bow. 

Port is the left-hand side, looking in the 
same direction. 

After dark ships and boats carry a red 
light at the bow on the "port side, and a 
green light on the starboard. 

The Rudder is a movable piece of board 
at the stern, by means of which the craft 
is steered. It is worked by a lever, ropes, 
or a wheel. The lever is called ''the til- 
ler." 

The Helm is that part of the machinery 
you grasp when steering. 

The Deck is the roof of the hull. 

The Center Board is an adjustable keel 
that can be lowered or raised at pleasure. 



40 BOATING AND CANOEING 

The Masts are upright poles to support 
the rigging and sails. 

The Yards are poles hung on the masts 
at right angles to them, from which the 
sails hang when in use, and on which they 
are furled or folded when not in use. 

The Boom is the movable spar at the bot- 
tom of the sail. 

The Gaff is the pole or spar for spreading 
the top or head of the sail. 

The Sail is really a canvas kite fastened 
to the boat. 

The Bowsprit is the stick projecting from 
the bow. 

The Rigging consists of the ropes at- 
tached to masts and bowsprit. 

Stays are strong ropes for supporting 
the masts fore and aft. 

Shrouds are strong supporting ropes 
reaching from the masts to the sides of 
the boat. 

Ratlines are little ropes fastened to the 
shrouds by which sailors may climb up or 
down. 

The painter is a rope at the bow, used 
to fasten small boats as a halter fastens a 
horse. 

Windward means the side of the boat 
against which the wind blows. 

Leeward, opposite side to windward. 

Ballast weights of stone, iron or bags of 
sand used to balance the boat. 



BOATING AND CANOEING 43 

A good way to learn about the parts of 
a boat is to whittle out a small working 
model. This is a help, but only the actual 
experience can teach you how to manage a 
sail and at the same time steer the boat. 
Of course, you can learn this for yourself, 
but the better way is to serve an appren- 
ticeship to some more experienced com- 
panion. 

The first essential to a sail boat is that 
it should be well made and properly bal- 
anced. The second, that it should be care- 
fully rigged, and the third that the man in 
charge should know just how to avail him- 
self of these advantages. 

Sailing before the wind is easy enough. 
It is in tacking and beating up against the 
wind that skill and care are required. Jib- 
ing, that is changing the boom and sail 
when tacking, requires the greatest care, 
particularly if the wind is stiff, and begin- 
ners should never be permitted to attempt 
it. 

Where the water is apt to be rough, the 
sail of every boat should be provided with 
reefing points — that is little ropes. They 
are on both sides of the sail. The sail is 
rolled up from the bottom and tied down 
to the boom. This is called "reefing" or 
"shortening" sail. 

At nights small boats and canoes should 
carry lights, as before indicated. It is a 



44 BOATING AND CANOEING 

difficult thing to make a sailor through 
books. The best that can be done is to 
advise what to do, and still more, what not 
to do. 

ADVICE 

Don't overload the boat. 

Don't carry too much sail. 

Don't trust yourself alone in strange 
waters. 

Don't leave your anchor at home. 

Don't forget your oars. 

Don't sit on the gunwale — the edge of 
the boat. 

Don't alter course too suddenly. 

Don't let go the helm for an instant. 

Don't mistake caution for cowardice. 

Don't be afraid to reef. 

Don't let your gear get snarled. 

Don't jibe in a stiff wind. 

Don't get rattled. 

Don't sail with "fool" companions. 

Of course, there are many other "don'ts" 
that will suggest themselves to the sensible 
boy ; among them, "Don't fail to keep your 
boat pumped out or bailed," and "don't for- 
get to carry an anchor of some sort," and 
not the least important, "don't leave your 
eatables and drinkables ashore." 



CHAPTER VII 

SOME SMALL SAIL BOATS THAT CAN BE 

MADE IN THE WINTER, OR THAT CAN BE 

BOUGHT WITHOUT MUCH MONEY 

There is no small boat so popular or so 
generally useful as the American catboat. 
The cat can sail into the very eye of the 
wind, while before the wind she is a flier, 
and yet she is not the best sail boat for a 
beginner. Let me tell you why: First, 
the sail is heavy and so it is hard to hoist 
and reef. Second, in going before the 
wind there is constant danger of jibing with 
serious results. Third, the catboat has a 
very bad habit of rolling when sailing be- 
fore the wind, and each time the boat rolls 
from side to side she is liable to dip the 
end of her heavy boom in the water and 
'trip herself up." When a boat trips up 
she does not necessarily go down, but she 
is likely to upset, placing the young sailors 
in an unenviable, if not dangerous, position. 
Fourth, when the craft begins to swagger 
before the wind she is liable to "goose 

45 



46 SAIL BOATS 

neck," that is throw her boom up against 
the mast, which is another accident fraught 
with the possibiHties of serious mischief. 

Mr. Dan Beard, the famous American 
artist and author, and an authority in such 
matters, thinks the sloop is the most grace- 
ful of all the single masters. This is the 
type of our great yacht racers. Next to 
the sloop, and very much like it, is the 
schooner rig yacht. This is a fine boat, but 
beyond the pockets of boys; however, 
smaller sizes can be rigged on the same 
plan, with a jib and mainsail, and they will 
be found to be both safe and swift. 

THE CONSTRUCTION 

Without careful working drawings, 
which but few boys could manage without 
the aid of a skilled workman, it would be 
impossible to show just how a good sail 
boat can be made. It should be said, how- 
ever, that the ordinary rowboat may be 
easily changed into a sail boat, provided a 
keel is attached, or a lee board provided. 
The latter, as you know, is a broad piece 
of board that is slipped, when needed, into 
a groove along the side of the boat, to keep 
it from drifting when the wind is not full 
astern. 

Good, light string timber that is easily 



8 AIL BOATS 4T 

worked should always be chosen. See that 
it is free from knots; if this cannot be' had, 
do not try to build a boat. 

After all, unless all the conditions are 
favorable, and you have great talent for 
such work, it will be easier to save your 
money and then buy such a boat as you 
need, or if you cannot do this, get a car- 
penter who knows how to build such a 
craft to make the boat for you. 

I have known cases where a number of 
boys, living near the water, bought a sail 
boat which they owned in common. Each 
had the right to its use on a fixed day, 
though, as they were school fellows, it hap- 
pened that they usually went out together. 
The latter is the better way, provided al- 
ways that when the crew starts off for a 
cruise it is distinctly understood that one 
of the number is to be the captain for the 
time and is to be obeyed accordingly. 

It was told when I was a boy, but I 
doubted the story then and I don't believe 
it now, that when migrating squirrels, that 
do not take kindly to the water, reach a 
wide stream they secure bits of wood or 
bark large enough to float them, then with 
their tails erect to catch the wind they sail 
gaily across. 

The natives of North Australia, the most 
primitive people of whom we have any 



48 SAIL BOATS 

knowledge, use logs, singly or lashed to- 
gether with vines, to cross rivers and arms 
of the sea. 



CANOES 

Our own American Indians were more 
advanced. Even the rudest of them had 
learned before the coming of the white man 
to hollow out the log by means of fire and 
to shape it with stone axes into the form 
of the present canoe. 

The birch-bark canoe, made by the In- 
dians of the northern rivers and lakes, is 
really a work of art. It is a model of 
Hghtness, and when we consider its frailty, 
and then the way in which it can be man- 
aged in the most turbulent currents, our 
admiration is divided between the craft of 
the maker and the surprising skill of the 
man who handles the paddle. 

The ancestor of the graceful yacht and 
of the great ocean steamers, that carry 
their thousands with as much comfort as if 
they were on shore, is the rude canoe or 
raft of our own forefathers. 

It is from these forefathers that we have 
inherited our love for outdoor life, for fish- 
ing and for water, and the instinctive de- 
sire to hunt which is inborn in every 
healthy boy. 



SAIL BOATS 49 



EVOLUTION 

In the evolution of water craft, the ves- 
sel propelled by pole, paddle or oar must 
have preceded the use of sails. The former 
required more strength and the latter more 
skill. But no matter what science and art 
may do to make sailing more secure and 
comfortable, the boy, particularly if he be 
country bred, and so forced to be more 
self-reliant, will have a try at the raft, 
dingey or canoe before he aspires to any- 
thing more elaborate and expensive. 

I like work that develops the ingenuity 
of the boy. On a long mill pond out in 
Kentucky — this was some years ago — I 
came upon some boys who were managing 
a raft propelled by a sail made from two 
bed sheets. The body of this strange craft 
consisted of four logs, sharpened at the 
bow and of varying length, so as to present 
a wedge point to the water. Across the 
logs cleats were nailed that kept them to- 
gether and answered for a deck. A stout 
pole, secured in front, served for a mast 
and a smaller pole, with a piece of board 
nailed to the end, acted as a rudder. 

On board this strange craft there were 
four boys and a dog, the latter, judging 
from his barking, quite wild with the fun 
of it. Before the wind this sailing raft 



i 



50 SAIL BOATS 

made good time, but as the craft refused 
to tack, the boys lowered the sail and poled 
back for another try, just as boys clamber 
up hill in winter for the sheer joy of coast- 
ing down. 

OTHER BOATS 

We have learned from the South Sea 
Islanders how to build and manage a cata- 
maran. This consists of two canoes or 
long thin boats, placed parallel and joined 
together by wooden strips, which also an- 
swer for a deck. This craft can be rowed 
or driven by a sail, placed well forward. Its 
great advantage is its stiffness, for it can- 
not be upset in an ordinary sea. 

The dingey, shaped like the bottom of a 
flatiron, with a blunt stern and a sharp 
nose, is the boat with which the boy in the 
country first makes acquaintance. It is pro- 
pelled by two oars, usually fastened to the 
sides by pivot row-locks. This is a handy 
boat for getting about in, but it is quite im- 
possible to learn the art of rowing from 
such a mechanical contrivance. 

ROWING 

Properly done, there is no single exer- 
cise that develops the arms, chest, back 
and leg muscles as does rowing. Whether 
your boat is a dingey or an expensive row- 



SAIL BOATS 51 

ing shell, always enter it, if the purpose is 
pleasure and exercise, with the determi- 
nation to get the best out of it. 

Be sure that your oars are of the right 
length, so as to avoid the contact of the 
ends. Have the row-locks so arranged that 
the oars will turn or move in any direction 
without creaking or strain. The braces for 
the feet should be movable, so as to accom- 
modate any length of leg, and the seat 
should not be too high. 

There are many styles of rowing, none 
of which may be discussed here. It is well 
at the start to learn how to "feather" your 
oars, whether you are handling one or two. 
This consists in bringing the edge of the 
blade parallel with the water — a splendid 
exercise for the wrists — then turning the 
blade as it reaches the water, and with all 
the strength of every muscle drawing the 
oars steadily, never jerkily, till the stroke is 
finished. The one purpose is to keep up a 
uniform speed, and this can be done only by 
a uniform stroke. 

Endurance, rather than mere brute 
strength, is the thing to be kept in mind 
in rowing, as in everything else requiring 
effort. Always have in reserve a stock of 
endurance to be used should occasion re- 
quire. Never start out with a dash, even if 
you are in a hurry, but strike a gait that 
you can keep up without making severe de- 



53 SAIL BOATS 

mands on that most essential of all the or- 
gans — the heart. 

THE CANOE 

The canoe, as you know, is managed by 
a single paddle, though I have seen, up in 
some of the Adirondack lakes, canoes that 
were driven by oars. But, excepting in 
name and shape, these were not canoes; 
they were long, narrow boats. 

The Indian, and the white man who 
would learn the fine art of canoeing, sits in 
the bottom of the canoe and close to the 
stern end, though in fact a canoe is all 
stern and all bow, sailing equally well no 
matter which end is in front. The Indian 
does not paddle on one side and then on 
the other. He uses, as a rule, the left hand 
side. He grasps the blade right hand at 
the top, left hand a foot or more down, 
and then reaching the paddle forward, he 
digs it into the water with a strong, firm 
grip, keeping it perpendicular and drawing 
it aft. When the paddle is abreast his 
erect body, he suddenly turns the blade so 
as to bring the flat against the body of the 
canoe. This acts at once as a lee board 
and a rudder. With these graceful move- 
ments the canoe is managed from one side, 
and can be made to go as straight as a 
bullet to a bull's-eye. 



SAIL BOATS 53 

Unlike the dingey or flat bottom boat, 
the canoe is easily upset. Therefore the 
paddler and his passengers, if he have any, 
must sit on the bottom. Never rise unless 
you are alongside a float or dock. The 
boy or the man who "rocks the boat for 
fun" is either idiotic or insane; in either 
case he is unfit to care for precious human 
lives. Now, the ordinary boat will stand 
a little of such fooling, but the canoe re- 
fuses to be rocked. At the first insult of 
that kind it very properly dumps out its 
occupants. 

THE CANVAS CANOE 

The lightness of the birch bark canoe 
is not the least of its advantages; but as 
birch bark is not available in the settled 
parts of our country, a substitute was de- 
sired, a substitute quite as light and of a 
material that would not be seriously in- 
jured by dents. This w^as found in a can- 
vas cover over a light wicker, collapsible 
frame. 

A frame can be made of bamboo, rat- 
tan, willow or light strong pieces of pliant 
wood such as spruce or hickory. The 
pieces can be joined with screws or wire, 
never nails. The length as to breadth to 
insure safety should be as eight to one, 
though many canoes are narrower. 

With tools and material, both of which 



54 SAIL BOATS 

are easily obtained, any boy, with patience 
and some skill, can construct a frame to 
his own liking. The frame must be cov- 
ered with a light, strong canvas, cut and 
sewed to make a good fit. 

When this is done, paint the canvas in- 
side and out, taking care to paint under 
the frame, which can be removed if neces- 
sary. A second and even a third coat of 
paint may be needed. Canvas covers 
should be made for the aft and front decks, 
under which a small tent or camping ap- 
pliances can be carried. 

In a canoe of this kind, fourteen feet 
long and eighteen inches wide, three young 
American students made a voyage from the 
head-waters of the Rhine to Holland and 
the North Sea. They made the canoe in 
Paris, and carried it in a bundle to Switz- 
erland. This vessel held a complete camp- 
ing outfit and provisions. 



CHAPTER VIII 

IF YOU can't swim, LEARN AT ONCE — HELPS 

TO LEARNERS CONFIDENCE IS 

THE THING 

Every animal, except man, can swim 
naturally on finding itself in the water for 
the first time, for it takes a position nearly 
the same as if it were on land and walking. 

The physical structure of man, the lord 
of creation, is not so favorably adapted for 
his making his way through the water, his 
head being much heavier in proportion to 
its size than his trunk, while he has to 
make an entirely new departure, in aban- 
doning his customary erect position, and 
has to adopt movements of the limbs to 
which he has not previously been accus- 
tomed. Still, the specific gravity of the 
human body, particularly when the cavity 
of the chest is filled with air, is lighter thaa 
that of water, in proportion to the obesity 
of the individual, stout people being able 
to float more easily than those of spare 
build. 

55 



56 SWIMMING 

There are thousands and thousands of 
boys in this vast country who have never 
seen big rivers, like the Ohio and Missis- 
sippi, or beheld the broad ocean,, with its 
white, sandy beach and small, quiet bays, 
or the great blue lakes, and whose only 
chance to swim is in the deep holes of 
some small stream, a mill-pond or small 
lake. 

Beginners are just as liable to meet with 
serious accidents in such places as in the 
large rivers or the salt sea. For it must 
be remembered it is not the width of the 
water, but its depth, that troubles a be- 
ginner. 

HOW TO LEARN 

Beyond the practice that makes for per- 
fection, the only other thing necessar}^ for 
swimming is confidence. Every man, woman, 
and child — even if never in the water be- 
fore — could keep afloat if he, she or it had 
the required confidence, but as they have 
not this confidence, the question is : "How 
can it be acquired ?" 

There is an old saying, "Familiarity 
breeds contempt." While, like many other 
home-made proverbs, this is only partly 
true, there can be no doubt but that famil- 
iarity makes for confidence. The new re- 
cruit may be as strong and brave as the 



SWIMMING 5T 

veteran soldier, but the lack of experience 
makes him nervous and unreliable under a. 
fire v^hich the older soldier faces without 
a visible tremor of eye or hand. 

It is difficult to get confidence if you be- 
gin by getting "awfully scared." Every 
boy, and every girl too, should know how 
to swim, and both are more than eager to 
learn. Now, the boy who can swim, and 
who is properly proud of the fact, will, if 
he stops to think, recall a time not very 
far distant when he lacked confidence and 
could not keep himself afloat for a second. 
And he may recall how frightened he was 
when some foolishly thoughtless friend or 
heartless bully tried to duck him, or to 
push him beyond his depth. 

BE KIND 

The first hard fight I ever had was with 
a big boy — it is the conflict I look back at 
with the most pleasure — who was holding 
a smaller boy under the water. We fought 
quite naked, and — well, I licked the bully, 
and never after that did he try to frighten 
small boys in that swimming hole. 

Boys will be boys, but even then each 
should have in him much of the man he 
hopes one day to be. Therefore I say, be 
a protector, a guide, philosopher and friend 



^8 SWIMMING 

of the younger boys, and if you know more 
than they do of anything, and they want 
to learn, teach them in a cheery, manly 
fashion, if you have the time. Avoid con- 
flicts, but if you must have one, see to it 
that the bully will not be eager for another 
such meeting. 

GOOD ADVICE 

Before saying more, let me give you an- 
other bit of good advice. Never enter into 
water the depth of which you are not fa- 
miliar with, unless you can swim, and in 
any event do not venture far into strange 
water unless you are accompanied by a 
companion as skillful as yourself. 

Big boys, as a rule, are glad to help the 
smaller ones, and in this way they teach by 
assuring confidence and showing by ex- 
ample how the thing can be done. 

Planks, floats, bladders and other arti- 
ficial contrivances are advised by some, but 
after swimming for years in nearly all the 
waters of the world, I cannot endorse such 
doubtful assistance. As one cannot actu- 
ally swim when supported in this way, it is 
far better to start in without them. 

There must be a beginning, and it should 
t)e made in the easiest and most sensible 
way. 



SWIMMING 59 



A GOOD WAY 



With your back to the shore and the 
water almost up to the armpits, bend your 
knees till the water nearly reaches the chin. 
Then gradually throw your bead back as 
far as it will go, until the base of the skull 
is immersed and the water covers your ears. 
Now stretch your arms backwards behind 
your head, at their fullest extent, the palms 
uppermost and slightly hollowed. Take a 
full breath, and swelling out the chest, give 
a little push off the bottom with both feet. 
Keep your mouth shut, as, perhaps for an 
instant only, the water will ripple on your 
face as the head takes its position, and 
then you will find your legs, which must be 
stiffened and separated. In this position 
you will float for a second, moving the 
while towards the shore. Then the water 
will dash over your nose and mouth, but, 
before it chokes, regain your feet and after 
a good long breath, try it again. 

franklin's way 

Another capital dodge is that recom- 
I mended by Dr. Franklin, in which the buoy- 
ant power of water is still more strikingly 
exemplified. Procure an egg or lump of 
chalk of an easily handled shape, and. 



GO SWIMMING 

when the water is up to your chest, face the 
shore and let the egg drop in front of you. 
Now take breath, shut your mouth, but not 
your eyes, which you can open and shut as 
easily in the water as out, duck under, and 
try to pick up the egg. You will find that 
while your legs rise from the bottom you 
will have to struggle with your arms to get 
down far enough to reach the ''tgg," owing 
to the great resistance offered by the water, 
and two or three attempts may be neces- 
sary to accomplish your object. You can 
come up at any moment by depressing the 
feet, and, as you face the shore, your strug- 
gles are working you into shallower water, 
so that the experiment is a safe one enough. 

You have now gained confidence, which 
is half the battle, and the next thing to be 
done is to try to move on the surface of 
that element which you have proved cap- 
able of sustaining you when motionless. 

It is certainly easier to float when the 
body is moving through the water than 
when it is stationary, on much the same 
principle which sustains the oyster shell 
that skips along the surface of the sea, un- 
til, the impetus given it by the thrower 
being exhausted, it sinks to the bottom. In 
like manner the pace acquired in swimming 
helps to sustain the body. 

If you can keep afloat while you count 
five, or long enough to inhale the breath 



SWIMMING gj. 

once the battle is won; and while you may 
not be quahfied to enter for the Ion? dis- 
tance championship, you can modestly call 
yourself "a swimmer." ^ 

Books give us valuable information about 
how to do many things, but when it comes 
to swimmmg, all the book can do is to ad 
vise, and if the author gives us his ow„ 
experience as I am trying to do here k 
must be of great help. ' 



CONFIDENCE 



I have said that in learning to swim con- 

ftilfsH k- *' ^r^* ''''"^''^' but wh°L 
add ttt "^ ""^^hangeably to that, I will 
add that perseverance is a good second 
Never get discouraged. Stick to it R^ 
peat over and over again either of the two 
exercises before given. Each time you S 
find them easier. Then suddenlv, and be- 
fore you know It, you will be keeping your- 
self afloat. What if it is only for^a^few 
^ondsand you have not moved a foot? 
Dontgiveup. "If at first you don't suc- 

shofiM*'^.' '7 "^^''?- '. ■Th^t'^a mo"to you 
should heed, particularly in learning^ to 

mng, but pay no attention to these at the 



SWIMMING 



STROKES 



When I was a boy, and I presume it is 
so still, there was a stroke known as "dog 
fashion." As a matter of fact, it might as 
well be called the fashion of any other ani- 
mal, for all quadrupeds swim exactly as 
they walk, that is by moving the feet alter- 
nately forward; and this is the very way 
one is inclined to try it at the start. 

If you can go dog fashion with some 
confidence, it will be well to learn the 
^'breast stroke," which, though not the fast- 
est, is perhaps the most general, as it is the 
most graceful, among non-professionals. 
But first a word as to the management of 
the legs. 

THE LEGS 

While the arm movements can be greatly 
Taried, there can be, in the nature of things, 
no such variation in the action of the legs. 
It is said, and truthfully, that the motion 
of the legs of a human swimmer are much 
like the motion of a frog's hind legs when 
swimming. That is, the boy draws his legs 
up simultaneously and kicks them out in the 
same way, but in so doing he is not imitat- 
ing a frog, for if he works the limbs to- 
gether there is no other possible way in 
which he can do it under water. The frog's 



SWIMMING 63 

breast stroke is another story. A man 
swims very much as does a frog, though 
he cannot do so well under water as the 
amphibian. The legs are kicked in the 
same way and there is the same motion of 
the arms of one as of the forelegs of the 
other. 

Some swimming teachers believe that the 
main reliance is the legs, but this has not 
been my experience, and I have seen many 
swimmers in many waters. The legs steady 
the body, but it is the arms that make for 
speed as well as for steering, though on the 
back it is the legs that do the business. 

HOW TO DO IT 

Bring your hands together under your 
chin, with the palms down, fingers straight, 
close together, and pointing in the direction 
you are about to move. Next shove the 
two hands straight out in front of you, 
keeping your thumbs touching. As your 
hands are pushed forward, kick backward 
with your legs, as previously described. 
When the knees are straight, the legs will 
be spread wide apart. Bring them to- 
gether, and, if you time this properly, your 
position will now be that of an arrow, the 
point being your extended hands. 

While the arms and legs alike do their 
share in the propulsion of the body, the 



64 SWIMMING 

legs perform by far the most important 
work, and the importance of a good "kick" 
cannot be too strongly urged. Though the 
action of the soles of the feet upon the 
water helps the "drive," the momentum is 
also given by the "wedge" of water em- 
braced and driven backwards by the action 
of the backs of the thighs and calves, as 
they almost come together at the completion 
of the leg stroke. Hence, the wfder the 
stretch the more powerful the "drive," and 
the beginner should try to rival as closely 
as possible that acrobatic performance 
known as "the splits" when trying to mas- 
ter the kick. The action of arms and legs 
is alternate; that is to say, when the legs 
are making their sweep, the arms are 
thrown forward to their fullest extent, thus 
helping to sustain the upper part of the 
trunk, and sending as a prow or cutwater; 
then, during the first part of the arm stroke, 
the legs, almost touching after finishing 
their work, remain stiff and extended, so 
as to offer as little resistance as possible. 
These positions are but momentary, but 
their rigid observance is necessary to en- 
sure pace with the least expenditure of 
force. 

THE ARMS 

The breast stroke will require some prac- 
tice, and this can be helped by out-of-the- 



SWIMMING 6& 

water exercise. Close your fingers tightly, 
"but not so as to be very conscious of the 
effort. In this position, bring them up till 
the chin rests on the two thumbs, which are 
side by side and parallel. Next separate 
the hands, fingers still close together, shoot 
them edgewise as far in front as you can 
reach, then with the flat palms and closed 
fingers to the resisting water, draw them 
smartly back, like oars. 

For the second stroke, draw the arms 
edgewise to the first position and repeat as 
often as may be necessary. This exercise 
will strengthen the arm and shoulder mus- 
cles and greatly facilitate the movements 
when you come to use them in swimming. 

Be careful always to bear in mind the 
following rules : Keep the head thrown 
back so as to clear the mouth and chin. 
Try to swim as low as possible. The lower 
and the nearer level the plane in which the 
body lies in the water, the less the waste of 
power and the greater the speed, so that 
all rising and falling must be avoided, and 
nothing seen below the chin. Always keep 
the trunk steady and the spine hollowed, 
avoiding all squirming, wriggling and 
bending, while the motions must be made 
steadily, avoiding all hurry. Exhale your 
breath when the hands are extended in 
front supporting the head, and inhale as 
they are brought back — an action which ex- 



66 SWIMMING 

pands the chest and gives you almost in- 
stinctively the signal for taking breath, 
which should be inhaled through the nose 
as much as possible. 



I 



CHAPTER IX 

METHODS OF SWIMMING, FLOATING, DIVING^ 
AND SOME GOOD WATER GAMES 

Some girls, after they have learned the 
alphabet of music, and are able to play ele- 
mentary scales on the piano, are eager to 
surprise themselves and annoy their listen- 
ers by starting in to play tunes, if indeed 
they are not ambitious to tackle grand 
opera. But the wise learner is satisfied to 
take one step at a time, and before going 
on he is sure that he can do the previous 
steps reasonably well. 

I am old enough to have boys of my 
own, still I hope I shall never be so old 
as to forget my own boyhood, nor to feel 
that much of the boy nature does not still 
keep with me ; and this is why I advise my 
boy friends who read this to learn surely 
whatever they undertake; in this case it is 
swimming. 

After you can manage the breast stroke- 
well, try the side stroke, which you will 
find more speedy, but it has its disadvant- 
67 



68 WATER GAMES 

ages in a long swim, by reason of the ten- 
sion thrown on the muscles of the neck in 
keeping the head thrown so far back from 
its normal position, while the chest and 
shoulders, square to the front, offer con- 
siderable resistance to the water. History 
has not handed down the name of the 
founder of the side stroke, but he deserves 
canonization equally with the man who ate 
the first oyster. Nature evidently intended 
man to swim on his side, as in this position 
the body moves more easily in the water, to 
which it offers less resistance, while the 
action of the arms is not so fatiguing, and 
the head is supported by the water at its 
proper angle to the trunk. 

There is no arbitrary rule as to which 
side you shall swim on, left or right being 
a pure matter of choice; but while I think 
the left is preferable, as it gives greater 
play to the right arm, the right is the usual 
side "put on" by the majority. The great 
thing is to be able to swim equally well on 
either, as this enables you to keep your face 
to the breakers in a rough sea on which- 
ever tack you lay your course. 

When you have mastered this stroke you 
will seem to move forward continuously, 
and not in a succession of jerks, as with the 
breast stroke. The natives of the South 
Sea Islands, who are, to my thinking, the 
best swimmers in the world, use this stroke 



WATER GAMES 69 

for a long, steady swim, and I have been 
surprised at the speed they make and the 
length of time with which they can keep 
it up without a sign of fatigue. 

RACING 

The racing stroke is effective for speed, 
but it soon wears out all but the strong, 
expert swimmer. In acquiring it you must 
remember that pace is the great desider- 
atum, and, consequently, rapidity of action 
is requisite. To gain this you must com- 
bine two movements in one, by striking 
with the propeller on whichever side you 
swim at the same time as the feet, the sus- 
tainer acting in the same manner as before. 
As the legs are brought up for the kick the 
propeller is Hfted clear of the water, the 
arm being slightly bent in a graceful curve, 
and thrown forward in an arc to its fullest 
extent, the hand being held in the scoop- 
like position it maintains in the water. Now 
kick, and bring the propeller simultaneously 
downwards and backwards, v\^ith a bold and 
vigorous sweep, until it reaches the thigh 
when the elbow is bent, drav^ing the hand 
upwards to be thrown forward again. As 
this stroke is being made, shoot out the 
sustainer quickly forwards, and while this 
arm is pulled in towards the body the legs 
and propeller are quickly brought into._ac- 



70 WATER GAMES 

tion for the next stroke. The learner will 
have to count one, two, only in effecting 
this movement, as, when the propeller and 
legs are striking, the sustainer is shot out, 
and vice versa. 

OTHER WAYS 

Swimming on the back is very easy, once 
the confidence is assured. In this method 
the hands are folded on the breast, or still 
better, kept under the water and close to the 
sides. This done, the feet are drawn up 
together, as in breast swimming, and then 
kicked out together. As the arms are the 
chief driving power, swimming on the back 
is at best but a slow, jerky method of pro- 
ceeding, but if one has not learned to float, 
it is a good way to rest for a bit in a long 
swim. 

Some swimmers, particularly those that 
are narrow chested or lank and lean, can 
never learn to float, though once you know 
how, it is easier and far more comfortable 
than "falling off a log." 

At first, when learning to float on your 
back, and by the way that is the only way 
to do it properly, you will find yourself 
sinking slowly, feet foremost, until you 
seem to be standing up, and must use some 
exercise to keep afloat; but you can learn. 

Before lying flat on your back, inflate 



WATER GAMES Tl 

your lungs fully; as you do so you will 
be surprised to see how you seem to lift 
out of the water. Now, before your lungs 
are exhausted, for you will sink as they 
empty, breathe deeply again and exhaust 
slowly as before, keeping your arms by 
your sides and your legs close together 
and extended. 

Don't expect to float like a life boat at 
the first try, for you are not built along 
life boat lines; but if you stick at it, and 
make the experiment at least once every 
time you go in swimming, you will float 
well before the summer is over. 

GOING IN 

If you know the water, the best way to 
enter it is by a quick plunge or a straight 
dive. 

To walk into the water and "duck" is 
rather an ignominious proceeding, only to 
be excused in the novice or the lady bather 
we see at our watering-places bobbing up 
and down at the end of a rope. The swim- 
mer should not rest content until he is able 
to plunge in like a workman; but first, a 
word of caution! Never attempt to dive 
unless you know that the water is deep 
enough for the purpose. 

Many serious accidents have occurred 
from this mistake, notably when bathing at 



72 WATER GAMES 

sea. An incautious plunge from the ship's 
side into the sail bath extemporized over- 
board to ward off any danger from sharks 
has resulted fatally to the rash swimmer, 
and at all times danger attends rash plung- 
ing. 

It is, nevertheless, astonishing into what 
shallow water an expert can fearlessly dive 
from a height, his arms and head emerging 
almost before the feet have disappeared 
beneath the surface. The diver needs to 
be very quick of hand and eye, and many 
accidents attest the fact of the game not 
being worth the candle. 

I have seen bathers extend the arms over 
their heads and fall forward, which gen- 
erally entails a smart tingling of the chest 
and stomach, as the body is almost certain 
to drop flat on the surface. 

A very neat plunge, which requires prac- 
tice and a little pluck, is made by standing 
erect on the brink edge or board and, in- 
stead of springing from the board, allowing 
the body, kept rigid, to fall forward until 
it attains the proper distance, then sud- 
denly throw up the feet and plunge in like 
an arrow and without a splash. 

UNDER WATER 

It requires some practice to swim under 
.water, but you can soon do it It is well 



WATER GAMES T3 

to learn how to keep the eyes open under 
water. This is no more difficult nor pain- 
ful than it is to keep them open in the air. 
This skill may be of great use in locating 
a body that has sunk for the last time. 
Many such cases have been brought up and 
restored to consciousness, under proper: 
treatment. 

WATER GAMES 

are not as many as land games, but some 
of them afford good sport. One of these 
is 'Water Bladder," which requires good 
swimmers, at least they must not be afraid 
of the water. 

To play this game place two places, for 
goals, at proper distances where the water 
is overhead, and mark each with crossed 
rods, the tops about a foot out of water. 
Divide the party into two sides and take 
your positions as in an old-fashioned game 
of football. At 'the word "Ready," the um- 
pire, who is on the shore or at some con- 
venient point, throws an inflated bladder 
between the opposite sides. The object of 
the players is to send the bladder over the 
enemy's goal, and the rules are very simple. 
It is foul to interfere with an opponent by 
putting your hands on him, it is foul to use 
more than one hand in handling the blad- 
der, but you may swim in front of a man, 
dive under him, in fact "interiere" in every; 



74 WATER GAMES 

way you can. Each goal counts one point, 
and five points make a game. 

TUB RACES 

One might suppose that this would 
come under the head of boating, but 
one would be mistaken, for it properly 
belongs to swimming, as any one who has 
witnessed or taken part in such a race will 
tell you. 

Each contestant supplies himself with an 
ordinary washtub. At the word ''Go!" he 
places it in the water, climbs in as best he 
can, and paddles with his hands for the 
taw line. This is great fun, and if one out 
of ten gets through he may count himself 
^fortunate. He may not succeed a second 
time and will not if the others can help 
it 

When I was a boy we had no end of 
sport in running and diving from a spring- 
board. This, as you know, is a long, strong 
board — the longer the better — one end of 
which is firmly fixed in the bank and 
weighted with logs or stones; but no mat- 
ter how weighted you must see to it that 
it does not get out of balance. 

The free end projects over the water at 
any desired angle, and care must be taken 
at the start to see that there are no stones 



WATER GAMES 75 

or snags from which harm may come be- 
low the surface. 

It would be difficult to find anything 
more graceful than a lot of slender boys 
speeding up this spring-board and shooting 
out, feet first or head first, into the river, 
pond or swimming pool. 

When a boy can turn a somersault from 
the end of the board, and come down feet 
foremost in a clean-cut way, he may be 
said to be an expert. 

Contrary to the belief of those who have 
not tried it, it is much easier to turn a 
back than a forward somersault, though 
neither can be achieved without some prac- 
tice. 

In the back somersault great care should 
be taken that the diver leaps far, so as to be 
free and clear of the board when he turns ; 
otherwise his head may strike with bad 
results. 

As I have said before, diving may be use- 
ful in saving life, or in finding objects that 
have been lost in the water. In such cases 
it will be necessary to keep the eyes open, 
otherwise you will be much like one grop- 
ing in the dark. 

The tendency in diving is to keep the eyes 
closed. There is a feehng that if they are 
opened the water will hurt them, or that its 
touch will be painful; but this is a great 



76 WATER GAMES 

mistake. If the water is clear, and clear 
water is the best to swim in, one can see 
under water nearly as well as on top and 
the eyes are in no way affected. 

Pearl divers in the Persian Gulf some- 
times stay under water for minutes at a 
time, and if they could not keep their eyes 
open while searching- for the pearl shells, 
their descent would not profit much. The 
eyes of these people are never injured. 

In the Bay of Apia, in the Samoan 
Islands, I have seen native boys diving 
from a canoe under the bottom of a great 
ocean steamer. On one occasion a boy 
brought up from a depth of fifty feet a 
silver coin that had been tossed overboard 
to test his skill. 

CLOSING ADVICE 

Never go into the water when at all 
warm. The best way to enter is to plunge 
or dive in. 

Never go in more than twice a day, even 
if a fresh lot of boys come down to "dare" 
you. Learn to laugh at dares. 

Never stay in the water more than half 
an hour at a time, unless there is an abso- 
lute need for your so doing. You cannot 
learn too early that good health is easily 
lost and hard to regain. 



CHAPTER X 

HOW SIDES ARE CHOSEN IN GAMES 

When teams from different clubs, or 
schools, or places meet to try their skill in 
some game requiring skill and endurance, 
there is no occasion to "choose sides," for 
that has been done in advance. But when 
boys of the same school or association 
meet for a game, it is necessary that the 
leaders should be decided on in advance, 
as also the means by which the respective 
sides must be chosen. 

When two boys are contesting, one may 
pick up a pebble and ask, "Which hand is 
it?" If the guess is right, the boy making 
it is "It." "Drawing straws" is another 
method of choosing sides, and it is often 
used as a game in itself. 

From a handful of grass, one of the boys 
selects as many pieces as there are to be 
players. One of the blades is cut off so 
that it will be much shorter than the other 
pieces. 

"Straw holder" arranges the straws so 
77 



78 CHOOSING SIDES 

that the top ends protrude from his closed 
fist, either perfectly even or irregular in 
their height above the hand, according to 
his fancy. It may happen that the first 
boy to choose a straw will select the short 
one. This in a measure spoils the fun, and 
to guard against it the lads are often made 
to stand up in a line and each one in turn 
pulls a straw from the fist of "Straw-hold- 
er." Each one is expected and required to 
put it behind his back immediately and 
keep it there until all the boys in the line 
have straws behind their backs. 

Then "Straw-holder," holding up the 
straw left in his own hand, cries, "Who is 
short straw?" At that each boy produces 
his straw and compares it with the others. 

Another method is to place a button, 
pebble or other small object that can be 
easily concealed in one hand. Then, with 
both fists closed, place one above the other 
and ask, "Which is it, Joe; high or low?" 
If the empty hand is chosen the boy goes 
free. So it goes on, the last holder of the 
stone being it, for the one making the un- 
lucky guess has to hold the object. 

"Odd or Even" is often the method by 
which the one having the first choice in 
choosing shall be selected. 

The method is as follows : One boy se- 
lects at random a handful of pebbles, mar- 
bles or other small objects, and closing his 



CHOOSING 8IDE8 79 

hand, asks, as he holds it out: "Odd or 
even ?" 

If the other boy should say "odd," and 
on count the objects prove to be even in 
number, he has lost, and the other boy has 
first choice ; or if it is a counting-out game, 
the one who guesses right goes free and 
the last is "It." 

A very old v^ay is to toss up two coins, 
sometimes boys carry such things, though 
never for long. "Heads or tails !" cries 
the tosser. If the other guesses he is free. 

Sometimes a stone or a chip, moistened 
on one side is used, and the boy who tosses 
it up shouts, "Wet or .dry ?" 

This is simply a variation of heads or 
tails, or odd or even. Each section and 
each crowd of boys has its own way of 
choosing or counting out, and in this case 
the best known is best. 



CHAPTER XI 

SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT COUNTING- 
OUT GAMES AND THE RHYMES 
USED BY PLAYERS 

When children indulge in counting-out 
games they are quite indifferent to the fact 
that since the infancy of history and in 
every land, civilized, barbarous and sav- 
age, other children have played the same 
game, in much the same way, and have 
used rhymes that are curiously alike. Some 
learned men use this fact to prove the 
unity of all races. 

Mr. Beard, to whom I am indebted for 
much, has collected many of these rhymes. 
It will interest boys to compare some of 
them with those he already knows. 

Sometimes it happens that there are more 
boys than words in the counting rhyme, or 
the counter foresees that he himself will be 
it. In both cases he adds to the verse 
something like this: 

One, two, three. 
Out goes he! 

80 



COUNTING-OUT GAMES 81 

Often he will add a whole verse and 
dialogue as follows : 

One, two, three, 

Out goes he. 

Into the middle 

Of the deep blue sea! 

Are j^ou willing to be IT? 

Here is a rhyme that has in it a distinct- 
ly American twang: 

Ena, mena, mina, mo, 
Catch a niga by the toe, 
When he hollers, let him go, 
Ena, mena, mina, mo. 

Here is another familiar jingle: 

Anna, mana, mona, Mike, 
Barcelona bona, strike; 
Care, ware, frow, frack, 
Hallico, ballico, we, wo, wack! 
Huddy, goody, goo, 
Out goes you! 

Eatuni, peatum, penny pie, 
Babyloni, stickum stie, 
Stand you out there by! 
This is Irish : 

A lirripeg, a larrapeg, 

A bee, a nail, a stone, a stack, 

A bonny Billie Gelpie, 

A Belia-bug, a warum rock, 

Crib-i-stery, Hick! 

The little Turks and Armenians use this 
count : 



82 COUNTING-OUT GAMES 

Allem, Bellem, chirozi, 
Chirmirozi, fotozi, 
Fotoz, gider magara, 
Magarada tilki bash, 
Pilki beni korkootdi, 
Aallede shooullede Edirnede, 
Divid bashi 
Ben Ilayen kehad bashi. 

French youngsters use this rhyme 

Un, deux, trois, 
Tu ne Test pas; 
Quatre, cinq, six, 
Va-t'en d'ici! 

One, two, three. 
Thou art not "it"; 
Four, five, six. 
Go away from here! 

Here is how Dutch boys do it: 

Een, twee, sen kopje thee; 
Een, klotje er bij, 
Af ben jij! 

Along the Rhine this is popular: 

Ene, tene, mone, mei, 
Paster, lone, bone, strei, 
Ene, fune, herke, berke, 
Wer? Wie? Wo? Was? 



CHAPTER XII 

DO YOU KNOW ALL ABOUT THE GAME OF 
TAG? 

of ^^ P?^^ ^''P^ '^^'^ "The proper study 
of mankind is man " If he Hiri i.^f ^ 

th^ to include boys, then I Lf quite aTee 

t"^ 1^^>' ^M ^ ^^^' ^^""^ boys^and gils 
too, be It said, as a rule, far more interest: 

grL^nVp'^^^^^ ^^ ^^"^^ ^^- the average 

HnoH^^'^^ ^^"^^^^ ^^^"^ these stanzas from 
Hood^s fine poem, "The Dream of Eugen^ 

"'Twas in the prime of summer time 

WhL J "'"^ ^/^^ ^"^ cool, 

rf " "i!''' ^"5^ t^^^ty happy boys 
Came boundmg out of school;^ 

There were some that ran. 
And some that leapt, 

i-iKe troutlets in a pool. 

gaLV'ft wnnM^K ""^^''■•^dy decided on a 
game, it would be safe to wager that the 



84 THE GAME OF TAG 

first thing they started off with was the 
old and ever-popular game of tag. 

I have seen boys, and girls, too, playing 
tag among the Indian tribes of Arizona. 
The young and ever lightly-clad Mexicans 
delight in it, and the Chinese and Japanese 
youngsters never grow weary of a game 
needing so little in the way of equipment, 
and which is so easily started, but not so 
easy to give up, when the spirit of the 
game has taken full possession of the play- 
ers. 

Although so simple, there is never mo- 
notony in tag. If you don't like one form 
you can try another, and there are certainly 
a lot to choose from. One can have brick, 
wood, iron, tree or any other kind of object 
tag, the principle being that so long as the 
pursued has his hand on the object decided 
on in advance, he cannot be touched. 

In what is known as "Cross Tag," the 
boy who starts the game tags another, who 
at once starts in pursuit. Now, if another 
boy darts across **its" path this second boy 
becomes the object of pursuit, and so he 
continues until he has made a capture and 
is free to join the field. 

prisoner's base 

One of the oldest, and I think the most 
general and popular of tag games, is called 



THE GAME OF TAG 85 

now, as when I was a boy, "Prisoner's 
Base." 

^ In this game the two leaders choose 
sides. This done, two objects— they may 
be walls, trees or posts that stand some dis- 
tance opposite each other — are used as 
goals. Before these goals, the two armies 
are drawn up in opposing lines. Then the 
captains, or it may be others, lead off. 

One of these defies the other to meet 
him. After this the armies charge, but the 
purpose of each is to avoid being tagged by 
the other side, while it tries to tag or touch 
as many of the opponents as it can. 

Every boy touched is regarded as a pris- 
oner and must go to the base provided for 
the purpose, which is usually the goal of the 
other side, where he must remain till the 
game ends or he is released. 

The prisoner is guarded,, but if he can 
escape and reach his own side, without 
bemg touched, he is free, or if one of his 
own side succeeds in touching him, he 
gains his liberty. 

When all of one side are prisoners the 
game is over, and the winners deserve their 
success, for they have had to fight hard 
for it. 

THE WOLF 

Another variation of tag is called "The 
Wolf in some places, and in others. 



^6 THE GAME OF TAG 

"When do you eat?" But no matter the 
name, it is good sport. 

This is how to do it. A good sized piece 
of paper — any paper that shows a pencil 
mark will do — is torn into as many bits as 
there are boys. Each bit is marked with a 
number, showing some hour of the day. 
After every player has his marked paper, 
there must be one piece left. The last 
piece is marked with a number the same 
as that on one of those already given out. 

There are only twelve hour marks on the 
clock, but if there are more than twelve 
players, the extras can be given by half 
hours, like half-past one. 

Now, under one of the hour or duplicate 
numbers, mark a cross like X. No one but 
the marker knows the numbers. Each boy, 
as he draws, looks at his own number, but 
he must keep it a secret. The numbers 
must be drawn from a hat, without look- 
ing. The undrawn paper belongs to the 
marker, and he is the boy who holds the 
hat. 

The boy who has drawn the paper 
marked with the X is "it," and so is re- 
garded as the wolf. He goes off some 
distance, while the huddled "sheep," as the 
other players are called, decide what time 
of day they shall each represent. 

When all is ready the wolf calls out in 
chilling, hungry voice : 



THE GAME OF TAG 8T 

"I eat no meat but woolly sheep, 
My appetite is good; 
I thirst, I think, their blood to drink, 
If caught within my wood!'* 

On hearing this, the sheep set up cries 
of fear and run to form a circle about the 
wolf. If the ring is not complete before 
he gets through the rhyme, he is free to 
seize any boy who is not holding the hands,, 
on either side, of two other boys. 

If the ring is formed and no sheep cap- 
tured, the sheep circle about the wolf, 
chanting this song : 

"Wolf! Wolf! Wolf! with the brown ear, 
Tell us what hour you dine 
On one of the sheep assembled here!" 

The wolf selects his own hour. If he 
answers "One o'clock," the sheep bearing 
that number darts out of the ring with the 
wolf after him. If this sheep circles the 
ring three times without being caught, he 
is safe and takes his old place. The same 
hour cannot be selected again until all 
the others have been called. 

When the wolf guesses the number cor- 
responding to his own, he does not have 
to pursue, for his double becomes the wolf, 
and he is changed into a sheep. 

After the game has gone on so far that 
the number of each is pretty well known, 
the boys can change numbers without the 



88 THE GAME OF TAG 

knowledge of the wolf, and this adds 
greatly to the sport. 

BULL IN THE RING 

Another variation of tag is popularly 
known as "Bull in the Ring." The bull or 
"it" is a position to be sought after in this 
game. The bull can be selected in any one 
of the ways I have suggested, or in any 
other way that may be decided on. 

When all is ready, the boys form a ring 
by joining hands, with the bull penned in 
the center. 

This done, the bull seizes a pair of the 
grasped hands, and asks: "What is this 
lock made of?" One of the boys repHes, 
"Steel." "Steel is strong. What is this 
lock made of?" asks the bull, as he grasps 
another pair of hands. "Bronze," may be 
the answer. "And this?" "Copper." The 
next reply, "I can break copper!" shouts 
the bull. 

He then makes a feeble effort to break 
through, or it may be that he is doing his 
best, but he knows he cannot get out in 
that way. Suddenly he wheels and makes 
a dash for a part of the ring which he 
thinks is weakest. If he gets through he 
dashes away, with the others at his heels, 
and the first boy that tags him is "it" for 
the next game. 



CHAPTER XIII 

''i spy"' and leap frog, the ever-popular 

GAMES 

Like tag, "1 Spy" needs no apparatus and 
no great study. Any boy with keen eyes 
and nimble legs can play the game better 
than a man four times his age. Of course, 
"I spy" is not a game of solitaire. It 
needs at least two boys, but it will be more 
excitmg if there are five or six times that 
number ; the more the better. 

,,. Z^^ ^^^^ ^^^ ^"^ ^^^ect who is to be 
It This done, and a goal or home se- 
lected, "it" remains at the goal and counts 
up to one hundred as fast as he can, and 
this IS usually so fast as to eclipse the 
hghtnmg calculator whom Barnum charged 
an admission to see and hear. 

While "it" is counting, with his eyes 
closed and his head bent, his companions 
start off and conceal themselves in the 
neighborhood as best they can. When the 
count is up, and it is all too soon for the 
half hidden boys, "it" goes out to find 
them. 

89 



90 '7 8PY" AND LEAP PROG 

Any hider who can run and touch the 
goal before "it" shouts: "In free," and he 
is free. But if "it" spies a boy, then shouts 
the boy's name and reaches home first, that 
boy is caught. 

The game continues till all are free or 
caught. If "it" fails to catch any, then he 
must be "it" again for the next game. If 
he is successful, then the first boy caught is 
"it." 

The best time to play "I spy" is in the 
evening, for the dusk is the best time to 
hide, and in the dim light it is harder to 
recognize the boys. If "it" calls a boy by 
another's name, then he is free for that 
game. To deceive "it" the other boys often 
change hats or turn their coats — an act 
usually frowned down on, but quite per- 
missible in this game. 

If the last hider gets in undetected and 
shouts "Freeings !" all go out for another 
hide, and "it" stays in his old position. 

There are some varieties in this game, 
but they are not so different from the one 
given as to make them worth describing. 

LEAP FROG 

is distinctly an athletic game, but it never- 
theless requires that quality of brains called 
"judgment." The boy who does not know 



"/ SPY" AND LEAP FROG 91 

leap frog has something good to learn, and 
it is for him I am writing this. 

One boy turns his back to the player and, 
bending his head low, rests his hands on his 
knees. This is called "Giving a back." The 
other boy places his hands on the first boy's 
back and leaps over him, by straddling his 
legs wide apart on each side like a frog. 
The second boy then assumes the stooping 
posture, and the third boy leaps over the 
first and second, and the fourth over all 
three, one at a time, of course. 

This goes on until there is no boy left 
who is not stooping. Then the first boy's 
back straightens up and he goes leaping 
over his fellows and again gives a back, 
while the second follows, and so on until 
they are all tired and the game ceases. 

foot-an'-half 

The foot mentioned in this title is not 
the foot marked on a United States stand- 
ard rule, but a boyish foot enclosed in a 
rusty shoe and owned by the leader in the 
game. The boy who is "it" is known as 
First Back. He stands in the proper posi- 
tion at a taw. 

The leader tells the First Back how and 
where to stand, then lays his hands on the 
stooping shoulders and straddles over 



92 '7 SPY" AND LEAP FROG 

When the leader strikes, he makes a mark 
to show the place, and the First Back takes 
his place on this line. All the other boys 
must clear First Back from the taw line, 
not always an easy task if the leader is a 
good jumper. 

When the leader's turn comes around 
again he marks a new taw line about a foot 
and a half — he uses his own foot for a 
measure — about eighteen inches or "foot- 
an'-half" in advance of the old one. On 
the second jump he marks where his heels 
strike, and the First Back moves to that 
place, and the others make the leap. 

So the game goes on till a player fails 
to clear First Back, a failure that usually 
results in tumbling both over. The player 
who fails is *'it" for the next game, which 
begins at once. 

A variation of this game is known as 
"Foot-an'-half," with a Leader and a Foot- 
an'-half.'' 

In this game the First Back, who must 
always select the leader, picks out, instead 
of the best, as in the former case, the very 
poorest jumper. He chooses for Foot-an'- 
half a better player. His object in doing 
this is to have Foot-an'-half, who is his 
ally, set tasks that are beyond the ability 
of the boy chosen as leader. 

When all is ready First Back takes a 
position, with one foot on either side of the 



n SPY" AND LEAP FROG 93 

taw line and his side toward the players. 
Foot-an'-half is the last to jump, and know- 
ing what is expected of him, he leaps as 
far as he can. Where his heels come down 
another line is drawn. To this line First 
Back moves, placing a foot on either side. 
Now comes the test of the leader. He 
can now take a foot and a half, using his 
own foot for a rule, and jump from that 
point, but if any other boy can make the 
leap from the old taw line, the leader be- 
comes ''it" and a new game is started. 

SPANISH FLY 

I have been unable to learn where the 
boys got this name. It is started just like 
the preceding game. Some player, usually 
one who has confidence in himself, shouts 
as he makes the leap, and just before his 
feet touch the ground: ''Spanish Fly!" 

At once the fun begins in wild earnest. 
The boy who just shouts is regarded as 
leader. The second time he makes the 
leap he cries : "Torchlight" and makes the 
jump with only one hand on First Back's 
shoulders, while he waves his hat in the 
other. 

The player that fails to follow the lead- 
er's example becomes "it." On the third 
turn the leader shouts : "Hats on deck," 
and he places his cap on First Back's shoul- 



94 "I 8PY" AND LEAP FROG 

ders and goes over without knocking it off. 
The next player places his cap on top of 
the leader's and goes over. 

If there are many boys the hats pile up 
and the last jumper has a hard proposition 
to face, but if he succeeds he has a second 
try when he removes his own hat or cap 
without knocking the others off; and so it 
goes on till all the hats are removed. 

If this trick is successfully completed, 
and it rarely ever is, the leader' goes over 
again, this time shouting: "Hats full of 
water.'' As he leaps, he turns his hat so 
that it rests upside down on his head. 

If all the players succeed in doing this 
without losing their hats, the next cry is 
"Hats in the water." As the leader goes 
over he shakes his hat off and all the others 
must follow his example. 

When the hats are all in the water the 
leader must jump over First Back and 
alight on one foot without touching the 
hats. Then, without touching his raised 
foot to the ground, he must hop to his own 
hat, and kneeling down, pick it up with his 
teeth, turn his back to taw and, with a head 
toss, throw the hat over First Back. 

If any error should be made, the one 
making it becomes "it." Each player must 
take his turn at every change made by the 
leader. 

There is good sport in this game, if it 



«Z SPY" AND LEAP FROG 95 

is played in the right spirit. Sometimes 
boys with the rowdy element in them 
make it rough, boisterous and even danger- 
ous. 

Let me advise: Never play any game 
with any boy who tries to boss and bully 
weaker boys. 



CHAPTER XIV 

THE GAME OF CAT, WITH A GLANCE AT SOME 
OTHER GAMES ALL SHOULD KNOW 

The game of tip-cat, although very old 
in Ireland, where it is said to have orig- 
inated, and in all the British Islands, where 
it is very popular, is comparatively ne\^ 
in this country. 

Up to twenty years ago "Cat," as it is 
generally called, was unknown to the boys 
of this country. Now it is played from 
the Atlantic to the Pacific and from the 
Lakes to the Gulf. 

The cat is a piece of wood from four to 
six inches in length, and from one to two 
inches in diameter in the middle. From 
the middle to both ends it is whittled into 
blunt points. As it must stand a lot of 
pounding, it will be better if the wood is 
hard and tough. 

The bat or driver should be from one 
to two feet in length, an inch to an inch 
and a half in diameter, and of uniform 

96 



''CAT," AND OTHER GAMES 97 

thickness. When the cat is placed flat on 
the ground, or in a slight depression made 
with the heel, it will, when smartly struck, 
fly into the air. As soon as it rises it is 
struck again and sent in the direction de- 
sired. 

In the game of English Cat there are 
from four to eight bases, depending on the 
number of players. The bases may be 
small stones, or even holes in the ground. 

The bases are marked on the circumfer- 
ence of a circle, at equal distances apart. 
After sides are chosen and it is decided 
which shall have first innings, the Outs take 
to the field and the Ins post themselves at 
the bases, one base for each. 

One of the Outs throws the cat to the 
nearest man at base. If he makes a strike 
then all the boys on base change places, 
for safety's sake taking the nearest. If 
the cat has been sent far they keep on 
changing so long as they think it prudent. 

Each base gained scores one point. If 
the cat is caught the striker is out, or if 
the cat is thrown in front of an In who is 
changing bases, he is out. 

When the Ins are made Outs, the posi- 
tions are reversed and the game goes on as 
before. When a striker fails to hit, he 
tosses the cat back to the fielder and tries 
again. 



98 ''CAT;' AND OTHER GAMES 



COUNTRY CAT 

For this game a ring twenty or more 
feet in diameter must be made, in the cen- 
ter of which the striker stands. The field- 
er — any boy not a striker is now a fielder 
— tosses the cat, and if it is missed there 
is no count. If he hits and fails to send 
the cat outside the circle, he is out, or if 
the cat is caught, he is out. 

If the cat is sent beyond the circle, the 
striker calls out "Twenty", "Thirty" or 
"Fifty", depending on the estimated dis- 
tance the cat has gone. If his claim is al- 
lowed, the number called out is placed to 
the striker's credit. If it is disputed the 
bat is used for a measuring rod and the 
distance is measured from the striker's 
place to where the cat has fallen. 

If the striker claimed too much he re- 
signs his stick to the one who has the next 
turn. If it is found that the striker did not 
claim too much, the number is placed to his 
credit and the game proceeds. 

The number of points that is to count 
for the game is decided on in advance, and 
when a player has served the full amount, 
he is declared victor, and another game is 
in order. 



"CAT," AND OTHER GAMES Q9 

AMERICAN CAT 

The American cat is smaller than the 
Country or English cat, being over four 
or five inches long. If the game is played 
on the sidewalk, a small circle is drawn 
on the paving stones, where the strik-er 
stands ; but if the game is played on the 
bare earth, a hole is made, where the striker 
stands. It is the duty of the batsman to 
defend the hole or ring with the stick he 
uses for a bat, and it is the object of the 
giver or pitcher to toss the cat in the circle 
or hole. 

If he is successful, the striker is out. If, 
on the other hand, it falls outside the circle, 
the striker places the cat inside the ring, 
strikes it on one end, which causes the little 
piece of wood to fly up in the air, and be- 
fore it reaches the ground the striker en- 
deavors to hit it again and send the cat as 
far as possible. 

If he misses he throws the cat back to 
the fielder, who again attempts to toss it 
into the circle, but if he succeeds in sending 
it a good distance he does not call his score, 
as described in Country Cat, but the pitcher 
offers him five points or ten, as the case 
may be. The striker, however, is not com- 
pelled to accept the offer, and may keep 
the pitcher bidding for some time, and if 
his last bid is refused the pitcher proceeds 



100 "CAT," AND OTHER GAMES 

to measure the distance from the circle to 
the cat in jumps. If he can make the dis- 
tance in fewer jumps than he has bid, the 
striker, or the striker's side, loses the num- 
ber of points named in the last bid of the 
pitcher, and the striker is out. 

DUCK ON A ROCK 

does not require an "it" to start with. As 
soon as it is decided to try the game, each 
player hurries to secure a good sized stone, 
or vv^here this cannot be had, a club or a 
half brick will do. As each grasps his 
weapon he shouts, "My Duck." The last 
boy to find a stone is "It" and must call 
out, "My drake." 

The drake places his stone on a rock, 
stump, or other prominence and stands 
guard. 

A taw^ line is drawn and from this the 
ducks are thrown at the drake, each trying 
to knock him off his perch. 

When a player has failed, he must re- 
cover his own duck, and in doing so he 
runs the risk of being tagged by the boy 
guarding the drake. The drake guardian 
cannot touch the other until he has put 
his hand on his duck. 

The best way is for the ducks to make 
a rush for their weapons at once when 
most of them are sure to escape, whereas 



"CAT," AND OTHER GAMES 101 

one has but little chance. Whenever a bo}^ 
is tagged he must assume the place of 
guardian. 

If the drake is knocked off ^ all the boys 
make a rush for their ducks. The drake 
cannot tag till he has placed the stone in 
position. 

STONE THROW 

This game may be played with from six 
to twenty players. When the game is 
played outdoors, a large stone is placed on 
a boulder, and a player stands to guard 
it. A line is drawn twenty or thirty feet 
from the boulder. Here each of the other 
players stands in turn and throws a stone 
at the stone on the boulder, which he tries 
to knock off the rock. If he does not suc- 
ceed he goes and stands by the place where 
some stone has fallen, and waits until some 
one does succeed. If he prefers, he may 
pick up his stone and try to run back to 
the goal before the guard of the stone can 
tag him. If he reaches it in safety he has 
a chance to throw again. When some one 
succeeds in knocking off the stone all who 
have thrown may pick up stones and run 
back to the goal line, while the guard re- 
places the stone on the rock and tries to 
tag any one who has his stone in his hand, 
and who has not crossed the goal line. 
Whoever is tagged becomes guard. 



CHAPTER XV 

AND NOW FOR BALL — SOME OF THE MANY 

GOOD GAMES THAT CAN BE PLAYED WITH 

A BALL^ BAT, OR RACKET 

Ball in some form is played all the world 
over. Before Columbus came across, the 
Indians of the St. Lawrence valley played 
a ball game with rackets, which the French 
adopted and named Lacrosse. No game re- 
quires more dexterity of foot, hand, and 
eye. 

Certain games seem to be favored in cer- 
tain lands; Cricket in England, hand ball 
in Ireland, and baseball in the United 
States. But, then, as we adopt and absorb 
peoples of all nationalities so we take all 
the good things they have to offer in the 
way of games and, modifying them to suit 
Dur own tastes, we make them American. 

In addition to these imported games, we 
have, with characteristic originality, in- 
vented a lot of games of our own, and in 
these the boy takes endless delight, without 
bothering about their origin. 
102 



BALL, BAT OB BACKET 103 

On cricket, baseball, hand ball and other 
great games, many books have been writ- 
ten telling how to play "scientifically". 
Now, I am not trying to teach scientific 
games. My purpose is to add something to 
the knowledge of games which my readers 
already have, and so to increase their in- 
terests in those healthful sports that add to 
the joys of boy life. 

TOWN BALL 

This game, before being imported from 
England, long, long ago, was called 
"Rounders." In this game the bat and ball 
are both different from those used in base- 
ball. There are corners instead of bases, 
and there is a "giver" instead of a pitcher. 
The fielders may be of any number, but 
they are not known by distinctive names. 

The greatest freedom is permitted in the 
choice of ball. It may be of hollow rub- 
ber, or it may be of the good, old-fash- 
ioned, home-made sort. Did you ever make 
a ball, but of course you have, by un- 
ravelling a heelless worsted stocking and 
then winding the thread about a core of 
cork or rubber till the whole is quite round, 
the end being sewed to keep it from un- 
ravelling. This ball is finished by a cover 
of thin leather, cut in the form of a three- 
leaved clover and neatly sewed on with a 



104> BALL, BAT OB RACKET 

waxed thread. The bat is Hke that used in 
baseball but lighter and shorter. The cor- 
ners are usually three in number, with a 
home-base, making four, but this varies ac- 
cording to the whim of the players or the 
locality where the game is played. Ordi- 
narily with three corners the distances are 
about the same as between the bases in 
ibaseball. In place of home-base there is 
a rectangle marked on the ground where 
the striker and catcher stand. 

The giver stands in the same position 
that the pitcher occupies in a game of base- 
ball ; but in place of pitching or making the 
underhand throw, he throws overhand and 
*'gives" the ball to the catcher over the 
right shoulder of the batter. 

The batter stands at the front line of the 
home-base and holds his bat above his 
shoulder and strikes from that position, 
with both hands grasping the handle of the 
bat, if he is using a flat bat. But if he is 
using a "delill" he holds it with one hand 
and allows the swiftly thrown ball to strike 
his club and glance off at an angle to a 
part of the grounds where no fielders are 
on the outlook for it. Every time the ball 
touches the bat it is considered a fair hit, 
and the batter must run for his first cor- 
ner and reach it, if possible, before some 
fielder, the catcher, or giver secures the ball 
and "burns" or ''stings" him, as they call 



BALL, BAT OR BACKET lOfii 

it when they hit a player with the ball. No 
one stands on guard at the bases to catch 
the batter out, and the ball, in place of 
being thrown to the base^ is thrown at the 
man running the corners. When one bat- 
ter makes a hit or is put out the next bat^ 
ter takes his place as in baseball. ' 

The catcher stands behind the bat and 
without gloves, and with no protection for 
his face or body he catches the "hot" balls 
the giver sends to him. The balls are not 
heavy enough to be dangerous. 

The fielders scatter themselves over the 
field, according to the directions of the cap- 
tain, and try to catch or stop all balls from 
the bat, or those that are thrown at andi 
miss the runners between corners. 

When a man is out he is out until the 
next inning, and the game proceeds with- 
out him. If a striker sends a ball in the 
air and it is caught before it touches the 
ground by the giver, the catcher, or any 
one of the fielders, the batter is out. Ifi 
the ball touches his bat it is counted a 
hit, and if it is caught by any one of the 
opposite side he is out. 

If any one of the fielders, the catcher, 
or giver makes a successive throw at a man 
running the corners and strikes him with 
the ball when he is not touching his corner, 
he is out. 

If the batter misses a ball that he strikes 



106 BALL, BAT OB BACKET 

at, and the catcher catches the ball before 
it strikes the ground, the batter is out. 

When a man is put out, he is out for 
that inning, and cannot strike again until 
the next inning for his side. When all are 
out but one, that one has a very difficult 
task to make a score, unless he can make 
a home-run strike. There are no other 
batters to help him by sending a "sky- 
scraper" over the fielders' heads; but he 
must run his corners while the giver and 
catcher, standing in their regular position, 
pass the ball between them. This always 
produces a great deal of excitement and 
sport, as all the batter's side coach him, and 
if he succeeds in stealing a corner or suc- 
cessfully dodges the ball thrown at him, he 
is greeted by wild cheers from his side. 

Should he at last succeed in reaching 
home-base untouched, he has the privilege 
of "putting in" the best batter on his side, 
and there are then two men in and a better 
chance to score. 

ONE OR TWO OLD CAT 

is a modification of town-ball, and was 
played by our great grandfathers while in 
(Camp during the Revolution. It is a good 
game for three or four boys, not less than 
three, as there must be a pitcher, a catcher, 
and a batter. 



BALL, BAT OF BACKET 107 

Any goal can be decided on in advance, 
but usually the striker, after making a hit, 
runs and touches the pitcher's base. If he 
gets back without being it, or stung by the 
thrown ball, he can keep on, each run 
counting one. If the ball is struck at and 
caught, the striker is out, and the catcher 
goes to the bat. This is one old cat. With 
two strikers, there are sides and it is called 
two old cat. 

HAND BALL 

is another game that has grown into popu- 
larity in the United States. It is said to 
have originated in Ireland, wh^r« regular 
courts are built for it, but it can be played 
in any place where there is a high brick 
wall with a smooth open space in front. 

This game can be played by two, or sides 
may be chosen with any number of players 
on each. 

A medium ball, with good bounding 
qualities is the best for this game. The 
player throws the ball on the ground and 
in the bound he strikes it with the palm 
of his hand, sending it against the wall, 
above the three foot line. The force must 
be enough to cause the ball to drop out- 
side the taw line. The next player uses 
his hand as a bat, and sends the ball back 
against the wall in the same manner. He 
must hit the ball on the first bound or be- 



108 BALL, BAT OR RACKET 

fore it has touched the earth. The next 
player is ready to take his turn and strikes 
the ball on the rebound, and so the game 
proceeds, until some one misses, or sends 
the ball below the three foot mark or out- 
side the boundaries. 

If it is the first striker who misses or 
sends the ball out of the boundaries on 
the ground or side of the wall, then he loses 
his inning, and the boy on the other side 
drops the ball and strikes it as already de- 
scribed. 

If it is a player on "outs" that makes 
a miss, then the "inners" count one for each 
miss or foul. A foul is when the ball goes 
below the three foot line on the wall or 
rebounds outside the boundaries. 

The Outs cannot count when the Ins 
miss, but they take the place of the Ins 
and the Ins are out. After the first hand 
up or play it is unnecessary that the ball 
should rebound beyond the taw line. Fif- 
teen points make a game. In England the 
boys have the same game under the name 
of Fives. 

ANTHONY OVER 

or House Over. This game was very popu- 
lar out West when I was a boy. We called 
the game Anthony Over; in the East I find 
it is called House Over. But no matter 



BALL, BAT OB BACKET 109 

the name, it affords a lot of exciting sport. 
It is best played in the country for there 
can be found a house or a barn standing 
alone and with lots of space on either side 
for running. 

After sides are chosen and all are ready, 
divide into two groups, each out of sight on 
opposite sides of the building. The ball 
may be that used in Town Ball. The boy 
who has it throws it over the building at 
the same time shouting as a warning to 
the boys on the other side: "Anthony 
Over," or ''House Over." 

One of those on the opposite side must 
try to catch the ball before it reaches the 
ground and if he succeeds, he shouts, 
"Over! Over! Over!" at the same time 
rushing around one end of the building. 
Those on the side from which the ball was 
thrown at once make a rush for the op- 
posite side, and all whom he reaches by 
touching or by striking with the ball are 
his captives and are counted "out". 

If there is no catch, there is no count 
and the sides remain as they were, each 
throwing the ball alternately, and shouting 
as before to give warning. In some places 
the boy hit, instead of being a captive, joins 
the opposite ranks. It is always very hard, 
sometimes impossible, to capture the last 
boy, but it can be done through strategy. 



110 BALL, BAT OR RACKET 



CORNER BALL 

In this game the corners depend on the 
number of players. With six boys there 
are three corners, which make the limits of 
a triangle. With eight boys there are four 
corners, the limits forming a square. You 
should have more than four players because 
with this number you would have only two 
bases and the boundaries would be a 
straight line. 

The Ins take the bases and the Outs 
group themselves inside the triangle, square 
or whatever figure may be formed by 
the corners. The Ins pass the ball around 
the corners, throwing and catching until 
they see a good chance to hit one of the 
Outs grouped inside the boundaries. The 
ball is then thrown at the Outs, and if it 
hits one he is out of the game; and if it 
misses, the thrower is out of the game. 
But, if one of those in the center catch the 
ball, there is a laugh and the ball is thrown 
back to a corner man with no scorce either 
way. 

When all of the one side are put out 
of the game the opposite side has won, and 
all are entitled to a throw with the ball at 
the boy on the losing side who was first 
put out. The victim stands with head down 
and back arched facing the wall, while the 



BALL, BAT OB BACKET 111 

victors line themselves at thirty feet distant 
and take turns "burning" the captive — 
that is, hitting him with the ball — if they 
can. It must be remembered that the dan- 
gerous baseball is never used in these 
games, and the other ball does no injury 
to the lad struck. 



CHAPTER XVI 

BASEBALL^ THE GREAT AMERICAN GAME. A 
FEW POINTERS THAT MAY HELP YOU 

The best baseball field is level and 
smooth. It is best, if it can be had, to start 
with the right kind of a layout. 

The catcher, or back stop, as he is called 
by professionals, is usually in front of the 
observation stand, or a board wall or other 
obstruction. This is usually ninety feet 
from the home plate. 

If you fasten a cord one hundred and 
twenty-seven feet four inches long straight 
out in the field, the place for second base 
is found. 

This done, take a rope or line one hun- 
dred and eighty feet long, fasten one end 
to the home plate and the other to second 
base; then draw the middle of the line at 
first to the right and then to the left, till 
it is tight. This will mark the places of 
first and third base. 

The place of the pitcher's box is fixed by 
measuring a line of fifty feet from home 
to second base. 

113 



BASEBALL 113 

The pitcher's box should be five feet six 
inches long by four feet wide. For bats- 
man there are two positions, one for the 
left and the other for the right handed. 
The batsman's stand is two rectangular 
spaces, each six feet long and four feet 
wide. The nearest line should be six 
inches from the home plate, and should ex- 
tend three feet in front and three feet be- 
hind the center of the home plate. 

Having thus laid out the field, we pro- 
ceed to further mark the various points. 
In doing this, if the field is to be a per- 
manent one, it is best to make use of the 
most improved apparatus; but if the field 
is only a temporary one, there are various 
devices which save expense, and which an- 
swer the purpose quite satisfactorily. The 
home plate is, by the rules, a whitened 
piece of rubber a foot square, sunk flush 
with the ground, its outer edges being with- - 
in the lines to first and third bases. An 
excellent substitute for rubber is a piece 
of board painted white, or a bit of marble 
such as can be readily obtained at any 
marble yard. The first, second and third 
bases are canvas bags, 15 inches square, 
stuffed with any soft material, and so fas- 
tened as to have their centers at the cor- 
ners of the diamond which we have al- 
ready marked out. They will thus extend 
several inches outside the diamond. The 



114 BASEBALL 

customary method of fastening the bag is 
by means of a leather strap passing 
through loops upon the bag and directly 
around the center. This strap is slipped 
through an iron staple in the top of a post 
driven firmly into the ground at the corner 
of the diamond, and the strap is then 
buckled on the under side of the bag. 

The wooden post and the iron staples 
can easily be had. It is better to have them 
to keep the base fixed. A stone is apt to 
work injury. 

The bags can be homemade, from old 
carpets, or old mattresses, or even from 
shavings or hay, stuffed into little calico 
or canvas pillows. A piece of stout clothes 
line will answer for more expensive straps. 

The pitcher's box must be permanently 
marked. This is done by sinking into the 
ground an iron plate, stone or a wooden 
post, four or six inches square. 

If there is thick grass in the infield it 
must be cut from the pitcher's box to the 
back-stop, nine feet in width, or better still 
remove the sod and fill in the space with 
hard-packed earth. The players will soon 
make the batting-crease and base lines 
marked on the field. 

To make a fair division of labor in lay- 
ing out a field, let three boys agree to fur- 
nish the iron staples, and posts for the 
bases and pitcher's position, seven in all. 



BASEBALL 115 

The four for the pitcher's box may be any- 
where from three to six inches square at 
the top, and two feet long; those for the 
bases being three inches in diameter; and 
all of these sharpened to drive in like 
stakes. The staples, three in number, 
should be two inches wide. Let three 
others agree to furnish the bases; one boy 
to provide the six pieces of stuif — about 
sixteen inches square, another boy to fur- 
nish three two inch straps with buckles, 
or else sufficient rope. The straps must 
not be less than a yard long. The third 
boy can see that the bags are looped for 
the straps, stuffed and properly sewn. 
Three other boys can agree to furnish the 
home plate, and to bring to the ground im- 
plements for marking and laying out, viz. : 
a tape line two hundred feet long, a supply 
of cord, a sharp spade, a sledge hammer to 
drive stakes, a small hammer to drive in 
staples, some lime to mark out the lines, 
and a pail to wet it in. A tennis marker 
will save much work. The best ball to 
purchase is the regular 'league" ball. 
These balls are the most uniform in manu- 
facture and quality, and give the best sat- 
isfaction in the long run. It is worth while 
to purchase more than one, because it of- 
ten happens that wet grass ruins the cover 
of the ball. When a base ball has been 
used in wet weather it should be put aside, 



116 BASEBALL 

and the next time the nine wish to practice 
on a wet day this ball, which will be very 
hard, should be used. As soon as it is wet 
it softens again, and it is just as useful 
as a new one would be after wetting. Con- 
stant wetting rots the covers, but a har- 
ness-maker will re-cover the balls, and they 
can be used for practice. 

In bats there is more variety. A special 
bat is said to be made of wagon-tongue, 
but the more commonly favored is of ash, 
second growth, thoroughly seasoned. These 
can be bought for from twenty-five cents 
to one dollar each, according to quality. 
Lighter bats are made of willow; and the 
cheapest of basswood. These do not last 
so well as ash, however. 

The rules specify that the bat shall not 
be over two and a half inches in diameter, 
nor more than forty-two inches in length. 
In selecting a bat, individual taste is the 
best guide as to matters of weight and bal- 
ance, but the grain should be examined 
carefully. If a bat is varnished, the handle 
should be scraped, so that it will not turn 
easily in the hands. 

The first baseman and catcher should 
■each wear gloves to protect the hands from 
the pounding which playing these positions 
involves. 

You can make a pair of baseball gloves 
out of a stout pair of buckskins. The 



BASEBALL 117 

fingers and thumbs should be cut off at 
the first joint for the baseman, and if any 
extra padding is needed, pieces of felt can 
be sewn on. The catcher's gloves can be 
made in a similar way, except that the left- 
hand glove is kept whole and the ends of 
the fingers reinforced by heavy leather tips. 
A shoemaker can put on these tips which 
should be about an inch and a half long. 
Both gloves should have padding in the 
palm and over the ball of the thumb. This 
padding can be made of as many layers 
of felt as are desired, sewn in when the 
glove is turned wrong side out. The pads 
should be so cut that they run up into the 
finger a little way, and thus form a pro- 
tection for the base of the fingers. Every 
man who catches should wear a mask. A 
body protector will also save many a bruise. 

Individual uniforms should be considered 
where clubs are formed, and let me say 
it is better to start with a club. Uniforms 
for boys need not be expensive; shirts of 
one color will do with the addition of a 
home cap. Pads on the knees and along 
the thighs, as well as rough mitts are of 
use in sliding. 

Any number of players may belong to a 
club, but only nine can play on a side. 
Each side must have a captain, who must 
be a good leader as well as a good player. 

The umpire is chosen by both sides to 



118 BASEBALL 

decide questions in dispute. There is no 
appeal from his decision, even where both 
sides think him in error. 

It would take a whole book properly to 
go into the details of baseball, but no in- 
structions can take the place of practice, 
and it will be better if this can be done 
under the direction of an expert. 

RULES 

Here are a few baseball rules that it will 
be well to remember: 

1. The infield must be thirty yards 
square. 

2. The bases must be four in number. 

3. The ball must weigh not less than five 
nor more than five and a quarter ounces. 
It must be not less than nine nor more than 
nine and a quarter inches in circumference. 

4. The bat must be wholly of wood, ex- 
cept that the handle may be wound with 
cord or wire. The length must not ex- 
ceed forty-two inches nor the diameter, at 
the thickest, more than two and a half 
inches. 

5. The players on each side shall be nine. 
The captain assigns them their places. 

6. The pitcher must keep both feet on 
the ground, except when throwing the ball. 

7. Players' benches, out of the way, must 
be furnished by the home club. 



BASEBALL 119 

8. Each game must consist of nine 
innings. If the side first at bat scores less 
in nine innings than the other did in eight, 
the game is ended. 

9. If after nine innings the score is a tie, 
the game shall continue unless called off 
by the umpire. 

10. The game shall be forfeited if a play- 
er comes too late, or does not take the bat 
after five minutes when "game" is called. 

11. Every club shall be required to have 
one or more substitutes, in the event of an 
accident to a regular player. 

12. Men on the bases cannot have sub- 
stitutes run for them. 

13. The choice of innings shall be given 
to the captain of the home club. 

14. A dead ball is one that strikes the 
bat without being struck at. 

15. A score shall be counted every time 
a base run is made. 

16. A ball that goes over the fence, out- 
side the two hundred and thirty feet line, 
wins two bases. 

17. A foul strike is when the batsman 
hits, when he is not in position. 

18. The runner must touch each base in 
its order. 

19. No umpire shall be changed during 
the game. 

20. A coach is restricted to instructing 
the base runners only. 



Autumn 



CHAPTER XVII 

SOME DETAILS ABOUT FOOTBALL 

The mere act of kicking a football is a 
good exercise in itself, but very few who 
do so, particularly among boys, know any- 
thing about the game. 

In England and her colonies there are 
innumerable football clubs in every town 
and village, but in this country the game 
is largely confined to colleges, and even 
in these not all the students play; indeed, 
so many are the physical requirements and 
so strenuous is the work that only those 
with extraordinary strength and activity 
are selected in the making up of teams. 
Yet, as it is, when properly played, one of 
our best out-door gam.es, I think it well 
that my boy readers should know some- 
thing about it. 

At one time there were fifteen players 
on a side; now eleven is the legal number. 
The ground has much the same appearance 
of a gridiron, and the name "gridiron" is 
often applied to it, just as "diamond" is 

123 



124, FOOTBALL DETAILS 

applied to the space marked off for that 
game. 

Along the field the ball is urged, in ways 
presently to be explained, and which only 
the strong and active would care to carry 
out if pleasure in the strenuous sport were 
not its own great reward. 

The ball used in this game is shaped 
somewhat like a lemon, or two cones joined 
at their bases. From the middle the angle 
of slope must be the same to the two ends. 

The cover is of leather, and enclosed in 
this is an inflated bladder or an inflated 
rubber ball of the same shape. The work 
of inflating is done through a nozzle or 
opening as in a rubber tire and it is closed 
in much the same way. This is done before 
the cover is put on. 

The football field is not hard to mark 
out ; as in baseball, the flatter and smoother 
the better. The field is rectangular, one 
hundred and sixty feet wide by three hun- 
dred and thirty feet long. For convenience 
in telling the position of the ball, lines, in- 
dicated by whitewash as in tennis, are 
drawn across the field, fifteen feet apart. 

In laying out, measure eighty feet from 
one corner along the line and mark the 
point. On the opposite end mark in the 
same way. The end lines being one hun- 
dred and sixty feet long, the points indica- 
ted will mark the center of the lines. 



FOOTBALL DETAILS 125 

Next measure nine feet three inches to 
the right, and the same to the left of the 
center points on the end Hnes, and place 
four goal posts, two at each end of the 
field. This will leave the proper space, 
eighteen feet, six inches between the posts. 
On these posts, and ten feet from the 
ground, the cross bars should be placed. 
The uprights should extend above the cross 
bar just ten feet. 

THE TEAM 

The teams in football consist of eleven 
men each, but where boys are out for prac- 
tice, they need not be bound by the regu- 
lar rules. 

The eleven men are classified into 
''rushes" and "backs." There is a quarter 
back, two half backs and a full back. The 
first seven are line men, further known as 
center, right guard, right tackle, right end, 
left guard, left tackle and left end. Each 
player is given a number to designate him 
and this number is known to the captain 
only. 

The kicks have special names. 

Drop-kick, when the ball is dropped 
from the hand and kicked the instant it 
touches the ground; the 

Place-kick, made by kicking the ball af- 
ter it has been placed on the ground; the 



126 FOOTBALL DETAILS 

Punt, made by kicking the ball as it falls 
from the hands and before it reaches the 
ground; the 

Kick-off is a place-kick made from the 
center of the field. The kick-off cannot 
score a goal. The 

Kick-out, when one of the players on the 
side which has touched the ball down in 
its own goal makes a punt, drop-kick or 
place-kick. A 

Free-kick, any kick where the rules for- 
bid the opponents from advancing beyond 
a certain point. 

In-touch is out of bounds. 

A Touch-down is when the ball is kicked 
or carried across the goal line and held 
there. 

A Touch-back is when the player touches 
the ball to the ground behind his own goal, 
the ball having been propelled over the line 
by an opponent. 

A Safety Touch-down is when either by 
a kick, pass, or a snap-back, the player 
guarding his goal receives the ball from 
one of his own side and touches it down 
behind his goal line^ or when he carries 
the ball across his own goal line and 
touches it down, or when he puts the ball 
in his own touch-in-goal, or if the ball, 
being kicked by one of his own side, bounds 
back from an enemy across the goal line 



FOOTBALL DETAILS 127 

and the player guarding the goal then 
touches it down. 



SOME RULES 

When a kicked ball is caught on the fly 
by one of the opposite side, the catcher 
marks with his heel on the ground the 
spot where the catch was made. The 
catcher then shouts, ''Fair Catch," or he 
may hold up one hand. 

Beyond the heel mark the opponents of 
the catcher cannot advance till the ball is 
again put in play. The catcher is entitled 
to the privilege of falling back towards his 
own goal, as far as he chooses; from the 
point selected he may take a place-kick, 
a drop-kick, or a punt. Instead of this, he 
may choose to give the ball to one of his 
own side for a "scrimmage." The scrim- 
mage is governed by special rules. 

If the catcher chooses to kick, he must 
drive the ball at least ten yards, unless 
stopped by one of the other side. 

A player is said to be "on side" when 
he is not between the ball and the oppo- 
nent's goal, or is where the ball touches 
an opponent. When a ball goes out of 
bounds, it is called going "into touch." 
In such case, a player is sent to bring it 
back to the place where it crossed the line. 



1^8 FOOTBALL DETAILS 

A member of the side that sent the ball 
out of bounds puts it again into play. 

When a player carriers the ball across 
one of the end lines he obtains what is 
called a "touch-down." 

Any player on this side may now take 
out the ball ; he makes a mark as he walks 
by twisting his heel. When he has reached 
a point that suits, he places the ball for 
one of his own side to kick. The other 
side meanwhile retires to its own goal line. 

When the ball has been carried to with- 
in kicking distance of the goal, the ques- 
tion of the kind of kick needed is often a 
question for deliberation. 

At any time a player may carry the 
ball across his own goal line, and touch 
it down there for safety. This counts 
two points for the other side, or instead 
the side may take the ball out twenty- 
five yards for a kick-out. 

The moment the ball touches the ground 
it is "in play," and the enemy lines up 
on their goal line will block the kick, if 
possible. 

The formation is to a great extent gov- 
erned by the plays to be made, but as a 
general rule the seven rushers stand in line 
of battle facing their opponents. Just be- 
hind the rushers stands the quarter-back, 
and a few yards in the rear of him the 
two half-backs are placed; while a dozen 



FOOTBALL DETAILS 129 

yards further back, alone in his glory, the 
full-back guards his precious goal. 

If a strong wind is blowing, the winner 
of the toss-up takes the side favored by 
the wind, and the other team have the 
kick-off. If there is no wind to speak of, 
and no great advantage in either goal, the 
winner of the toss-up chooses the kick-off, 
and the other side have the choice of goals. 

The two teams now line up in their 
respective positions, and the ball is placed 
upon the exact center of the field by the 
side having the kick-off. 

THE FULL-BACK 

As a rule the full-back is a good kicker 
and is selected to open the game. 

To the right of the ball on the line stands 
right-guard, alongside of him is right- 
tackle, next to him is right-end, then comes 
right half-back and quarter-back, while 
stretched out on the line to the left of the 
ball are the center, left-guard, left-tackle, 
left-end and left half-back. All these sturdy 
men are ready to rush upon their oppo- 
nents the moment full-back's toe touches 
the ball. 

As the rules require the opposite side 
to stand at least ten yards back of the 
middle line, they form themselves in a sort 
of rough triangle so as to be able to guard 



130 FOOTBALL DETAILS 

the field and stop the ball with the least 
possible waste of time. At the required 
ten yards back of the center line, center of 
the opposing side is posted, back of center 
stand the two guards, back of them the two 
tackles with the quarter-back between them, 
behind them the two half-backs are sta- 
tioned with full-back in front of his goal. 

As there are no rules for placing the 
men on the field, this formation is altered 
to suit the captains. 

The player selected to kick the ball must 
send it at least ten yards into the oppo- 
nent's camp, and it is usually sent as much 
farther as the judgment of the kicker di- 
rects. When the ball comes sailing over 
into their ranks the enemy catch it and 
either return it by a kick or one of them 
runs with the ball. 

When the player made the kick-off he 
calculated that the rushers on his side could 
reach the ball in time to prevent the en- 
emy making much headway with it, and 
the enemy calculated to interfere in all law- 
ful ways with the kick-off's rushers. If 
the enemy who holds the ball starts for a 
run, the men on the other side tackle him. 

As soon as the player and ball are 
brought to a standstill the runner cries 
"down." Then some one on the runner's 
side places the ball on the ground at the 
spot where it stopped, and it is put in play 



FOOTBALL DETAILS 131 

by the snap-back kicking it or snapping 
it back, usually with his hand, but some- 
times with his foot, to the quarter-back of 
his own side, who has taken a position just 
behind snap-back. Up to this time the 
men of each team have kept their posi- 
tions upon their own side, but as soon as 
the ball is put in motion both sides may 
press forward and the scrimmage begins. 

When a snap-back is to be made they 
arrange themselves in this way: Center 
holds the ball, behind him stands quarter- 
back; more to the rear is full-back, with 
left half-back and right half-back a little 
to the front. Flanking these and sHghtly 
in advance are the two ends. 

Each of these is ready to receive the ball, 
at a signal from quarter-back. 

On either side of center are two guards, 
and two tackles, and the rival fives face 
each other. 

When the ball is put in play there is a 
grand rush. The runner with the ball is 
surrounded by friends who try to force 
their way through the opposing line. 

It is impossible in a general article to 
go into all the details of this popular 
game. Many authors have tried to make 
the rules and the methods plain, but they 
have not succeeded very well. The best 
way to learn is from an old player or to 
watch old players at the game. 



132 FOOTBALL DETAILS 

The points of the game are counted as 
follows : 

Goal by touch-down 2 

Touch-down without goal 4 
Safety by opponent 2 



CHAPTER XVIII 

A HINT AT SOME WELL-KNOWN GAMES, 
INCLUDING HOP-SCOTCH 

During a good deal of world-travelling I 
cannot recall ever having seen a game of 
Mumbly Peg played outside of the United 
States and Canada. I have placed it among 
the autumn games, but we all know that, 
except in winter when the conditions are 
unfavorable, it can be played at any time, 
where two boys and a jackknife can be as- 
sembled, with reasonably soft, smooth 
ground on which to play. 

This game has so many variations lo- 
cally and even among individual players 
that I shall not attempt a detailed descrip- 
tion of the many ways in which the blade 
of the knife is made to enter the ground. 

The feats, known to every boy, can be 
performed alone, and, when a boy, I know 
I did practice a lot by myself in order to 
avoid the consequences of defeat. 

The rule is for the first boy to take the 

133 



134 WELL-KNOWN GAMES 

knife and go through as many feats as he 
can, but at the first failure the second boy 
takes the knife and does the same. And 
when all but one have succeeded, the pen- 
alty for failure is as follows : 

A wooden peg two inches long is driven 
into the ground. A little must be left above 
the earth. The defeated boy has then to 
seize this with his teeth and draw it out. 
If he has difficulty in getting hold, the 
other boys are the more delighted and set 
up the cry, "Root! Root!" but this is n6t 
fair, and he should not be discouraged. 

JACK STONES 

is a much older and a more widespread 
game than mumbly peg. The knuckle 
bones of sheep and pigs, marbles, pebbles 
or any other small, heavy objects that can 
be thrown and grasped, are used. The 
best are made of iron and are sold cheaply. 

Five stones or jacks are necessary for the 
game, a description of which I shall not 
attempt, for the feats vary, and the ingen- 
ious boy can add to them. 

There may be a penalty decided on in the 
game of jack stones, but it is not usual, 
and so may be placed among those con- 
tests of skill in which success is its own 
reward. 



WELL-KNOWN GAMES 135 

HOP SCOTCH 

is a far more strenuous game than the two 
just mentioned, nor, when properly played, 
is it behind them in the skill required. Of 
course, the best place for all games is out 
in the open country, but the children in 
towns and cities do not cease from the 
play for want of space. 

Except when covered with snow and ice, 
Hop Scotch courts can be seen chalked out 
on the sidewalks of all our city blocks. A 
bit of brick, a flat stone, a shell, the lid of 
a blacking box, indeed any small object 
that can be moved by the foot can be used 
as what is known as the "Potsherd." 

After choosing who shall be first, second, 
etc., the player stands at taw and tosses the 
potsherd into division number one. Hop- 
ping on one foot over the line into number 
one, and still keeping one foot raised, he 
makes a hop-kick with the other and sends 
the potsherd out of the number to that in 
the right or left section, as may be decided 
on in advance. There are many local vari- 
ations of the rules, just as there are vari- 
ations of the plan of the ground, and per- 
haps the one you know best is the best. 

Hop Scotch may seem simple to those 
who have never tried it. In truth it is a 
game which, even in its simplest form, re- 



136 WELL-KNOWN GAMES 

quires much skill and activity. But it is 
excellent for the muscles of the leg and it 
cultivates patience and persistency. 

RULES 

When a player touches his hand or foot 
to the ground it is called ^'grounds," and he 
is out. 

When a player pitches the potsherd into 
the wrong division or on a line, he is out. 

When a player kicks into the wrong di- 
vision or on a line, he is out. In the next 
turn he must play from taw. When the 
turns of the others come they must begin 
at the division in which they failed. 



CHAPTER XIX 

HOW TO CAMP OUT — THINGS EVERY CAMP- 
ER SHOULD KNOW 

Camping out is not in itself a game, but 
it would be hard to imagine a more de- 
lightful way for the boy or the man who 
has still something of the boy in him to 
spend a vacation. 

Of course, boys in the country have more 
opportunities to learn about camping than 
boys living in the city. One thing is that 
they are more familiar with tools, but city 
boys are perhaps more eager for the life, 
as it is so primitive and in such striking 
contrast to their usual way of living. 

Before going into camp there are many 
things for the camper to learn if he does 
not know how, and one of these things is 
how to make a fire. If one has matches, 
kindling and wood there is no trick in mak- 
ing a camp fire, but there is a good trick in 
making a fire where there are no matches 
and the wood is green or wet. 
137 



138 HOW TO CAMP OUT 

Of course, you know that men built fires 
in houses and camps many, many hundreds 
of years ago, but you may not know that 
up to one hundred years ago matches, 
which are now so cheap and so abundant, 
were practically unknown. How, then, did 
they start fires? 

Our own Indians get fire — I have seen 
them do it — by rotating a hard upright 
stick in a cup-shaped hollow of lighter 
wood, in which dry charcoal or the fungus- 
like shavings of punk were placed. Cotton 
or any other substance that ignites easily 
would answer as well. This is getting fire 
by friction. 

Every hunter in the West and among 
the Indians and Mexicans of two conti- 
nents now carries a flint and steel, and a 
dry substance to catch and retain the spark. 
This substance with a full outfit can now 
be had in most stores that supply sporting 
goods, and every camper should have a 
supply. 

The back of a jackknife, a bit of flint- 
like rock, such as quartz, and some very 
dry cotton lint — kept for protection in a 
close box — will do just as well as the manu- 
factured outfit, and it can nearly always 
be had. If you carry half-charred cotton 
rags in a box or bottle you will find them 
of use in making fire. 



HOW TO CAMP OUT 139 



SHELTER 

Camps are either temporary, that is 
changed from day to day, or they are per- 
manent and may be visited year after year, 
or they may be used for a few weeks at a 
time. Temporary cam.ps are the ones we 
are considering, and these can be elaborate 
or very, very simple. I prefer the latter, 
and I am sure the boys will agree with me. 

During the autumn and when the weather 
is dry and the nights not too cool, the best 
way to camp is in the open, sleeping on 
beds of boughs, about a roaring fire, and 
with one blanket under and another over. 

Small dog tents, such as our soldiers 
carried in the Civil War, are cheap and 
very convenient. Each man carried a sec- 
tion, and two made a tent, into which two 
men crawled when it rained, but in dry 
weather they preferred to sleep in the open, 
even when it was freezing. 

Shelters of boughs, arranged A fashion 
from a ridge pole make good temporary 
shelters and are first rate as wind brakes 
at night. 

If you have to sleep on the ground, you 
should have a poncho, that is a blanket 
faced with rubber on one side, to keep 
the body from too close a contact with the 
wet earth. 



140 HOW TO CAMP OUT 

The ideal camping place is near a good 
spring or beside a stream of pure water, in 
a natural grove with plenty of dry dead 
wood in the vicinity. The dry wood should 
be protected from rain if you are camping 
in the same place for some time. 

The camp fire should be made of two 
thick green sticks or legs to be used as 
andirons. These should be placed about 
eighteen inches apart, so as to keep the 
lighter, dryer fuel off the ground. They 
will also serve to support the cooking pots. 
Where stones can be had, they serve well 
for andirons. 

A shack built of crossed logs requires 
some time to build and some skill to make, 
but it is not beyond the reach of any boy 
who has seen — and who has not — an old- 
fashioned log shanty. 

Be sure to select a dry place for your 
camp, and if you are to stay for any time 
take care to keep it scrupulously clean, 
burning every scrap that might attract flies 
or the smaller wild animals, or might make 
a stench. 

Mr. Beard, an authority in such matters, 
writes : 

''Never pitch your tent in a hollow or 
depression, or you may find yourself in the 
middle of a pond. Soldiers always dig a 
ditch around their tents. The floor, which 



HOW TO CAMP OUT 141 

is often your bed, can be covered with 
straw, if straw is obtainable; if not, fir 
boughs; these lie flatter than spruce. It 
is best to lay the foundation of good-sized 
branches, cover them with smaller ones, 
and over all place a deep layer of fir twigs 
broken off the length of your hand and 
laid shingle-fashion, commencing at the 
foot of your bed, or the doorway of your 
shack or tent, each succeeding row of 
boughs covering the thick ends of the pre- 
vious row. A properly made bough bed is 
as comfortable as a mattress, but one in 
which the ends of the sticks prod your ribs 
all night is not a couch that tends to make 
a comfortable night's rest. 

"Candles, lamps and lanterns add to the 
luggage of a camper and may be dispensed 
with, yet it often happens that you will 
need a light at night. If you do, remember 
that almost any sort of fat or grease will 
burn with a wick." 

Boys from our cities have even a greater 
desire to get back to the heart of Mother 
Nature than have country boys, perhaps 
because they find a greater novelty in the 
forests, the streams and the untrammelled 
conditions of our primitive ancestors. But 
even the boy brought up on the farm 
heartily enjoys the freedom of the camp, 
and he takes naturally to all its require- 
ments. 



142 HOW TO CAMP OUT 

IF LOST 

But all boys, even trained foresters, are 
apt to get lost in strange woods; but no 
matter the person, it is well to know what 
to do under such circumstances. As a rule 
the denser growth of moss on trees is on 
the north side. This knowledge may help 
find the direction; but it is better to carry 
a small pocket compass. 

When the sky is clear, the sun and the 
stars help to guide the course, and if fol- 
lowed one is saved from travelling in a 
circle, as the lost are pretty sure to do in 
a dense forest. 

If twigs are broken from bushes they 
will serve to show the course to those out 
searching. A good plan is to follow down 
the course of a stream, which always flows 
into a larger body of water and will lead 
to some abode. If a hill is accessible, the 
lay of the land may be had from its sum- 
mit. 

In any event, should you be lost, do not 
get rattled. You will be missed in camp 
and a search will be made by your friends. 
If you have to stay in the woods all night, 
make the best of it. Others have made the 
best of it by sleeping near the foot of a tree 
or beside a log. It will be more cheery 
if you can make a fire without 'danger to 
the woods. 



HOW TO CAMP OUT 143 

THE OUTFIT 

Now the camping outfit, including 
enough provisions for the proposed stay, 
must be carried, and unless the stay is to 
be short, a wagon or pack animals should 
be provided for this purpose. In the army 
and out West mules are used for this pur- 
pose, but any quiet horse will do just as 
well. 

The old sawbuck saddle, shaped like the 
letter X, answers very well, but the Mexi- 
can pack, known as the aparcho, is much 
better. It is made of a plated straw mat- 
ting, on which is fastened a strong wicker- 
work saddle, and a properly folded blanket, 
for you must be careful that the animal's 
back does not get sore. The saddle is fas- 
tened by pliant ropes, or broad belts of 
leather, called in the West "cinches," to 
fasten which securely requires some skill, 
as they pass through a circular ring and 
are secured by a hitch or peculiar knot that 
holds well and can be unfastened with a 
quick jerk. 

For a journey of ten miles or more I 
would not advise you to make the pack 
load more than two hundred pounds, 
though I have known mules to carry three 
hundred pounds at a pace of twenty miles 
a day over rough trails. 

If the pack is heavy, it may be lightefied 



144 HOW TO CAMP OUT 

by having each camper carry his own 
blankets, in a roll, the case resting on the 
right shoulder. I would advise each to 
carry a canteen if there is danger of your 
being long away from good water. 

You should have the following articles : 
A long-handled frying pan, a bunch of a 
half dozen pieces of telegraph wire, each 
two feet long, with which to make a spider 
or broiler; by simply laying them across 
the fire or over the hot coals you have a 
gridiron; you may bundle it up when its 
work is done; three or four assorted tin 
buckets for cooking purposes and for water ; 
a tin coffee pot; a long iron fork; a long 
iron spoon ; some cheap tin cups, plates and 
spoons, and some forks and knives. 

Do not depend upon the fish and game for 
food supply, but take along some boneless 
bacon and fat pork. With the latter, you 
can cook your fish, and the former is good 
for a relish with whatever fresh meat you 
may secure. Then you should have some 
good ground coffee in a tightly closed box. 
Some tea in a screw-top glass preserve jar, 
sugar, salt, prepared flour, corn meal, rice, 
beans, oatmeal, condensed milk, evaporated 
cream, crackers, and as much canned or 
dried fruits as you can transport without 
overloading — ^these are not necessaries, but 
all of them will come handy. 



HOW TO CAMP OUT 145 

Worth Remembering. It is not well for 
a lot of boys, no matter how strong and 
intelligent, to go off camping unless one 
of their number has had practical experi- 
ence in that kind of life. It would be bet- 
ter to have a man in the party and to fol- 
low his instructions, as a soldier obeys his 
superior. 

Before starting off it will be well to 
learn just what each member of the party 
can do best, and assign him to that work 
for the time. Afterwards it might be ad- 
visable to take turns at the work thought 
to be least agreeable. 

Cooking, washing dishes, gathering fuel 
and keeping the camp in order are just as 
essential as hunting or fishing, more so, in- 
deed ; for cooking, etc., are necessary, while 
fishing and hunting are pleasures. 

Keep your own person clean and carry 
along needles and thread so that you may 
be able to repair the rents in your own 
clothes. 

Before going into camp every boy should 
know how to wash, dry and fold his own 
flannel shirt, stockings and handkerchiefs. 

The captain of the camp should write 
out his orders and post them so that they 
can be read by all; nothing should be left 
to" chance. 

Under all circumstances keep your tem- 



146 HOW TO CAMP OUT 

per and remember your companions are en- 
titled to a good time as well as yourself. 

Don't be selfish, and don't go camping 
with boys who have that vulgar character- 
istic. 



CHAPTER XX 

CAN YOU RIDE A "bIKE?" SOME THINGS 

WORTH KNOWING ABOUT THE WHEEL, 

AND SOMETHING ABOUT OTHER 

THINGS 

To begin with, I am not going to tell 
you how to ride a bicycle. The only way 
to learn that is to get a wheel, and if it 
bucks you off, mount again and keep on 
trying until you master the machine. 

I have heard folks say that the bicycle 
is going out of fashion. That is sheer 
nonsense! What have boys, or sturdy 
young men, or sturdy old ones for that 
matter, to do with fashion? The bike is 
here, and it has come to stay, and to go 
on revolving as long as folks live on a 
revolving world. 

Bike parties that make explorations last- 
ing for days, or even for weeks, are now 
not unusual, and if they travel prepared 
to make camp wherever night overtakes 
them, the more healthful the sport and the 
more novel and independent the tour. 
147 



148 BIDING A ''BIKE" 

You should know how to carry the neces- 
sary baggage on your wheel. It is custom- 
ary in ordinary wheeling to strip a machine 
of every ounce of weight not necessary. 
Many riders travel without even a tool bag, 
pump or wrench. The additional weight of 
a few tools cannot be sufficient to make 
much difference to a rider. 

If you are a "scorcher," and are out to 
pass everything you meet, the less weight 
you carry the better time you can make. 
But the wheel is used by most boys for 
other purposes. 

The pathway of the biker is not always 
straight and smooth, as every boy who has 
ridden a wheel knows. The collision can 
always be avoided by good eyes and reason- 
able speed, but no eyes are keen enough to 
note, and no skill alert enough to avoid the 
broken glass, or the bits of scrap iron that 
beset the path and puncture the tire. 

REPAIRS 

A friend assures me that he has mended 
a punctured tire with chewing gum. Now 
I do not think well of the chewing gum 
habit, but if the stuff can be found to have 
better uses, I am not the one to discourage 
it. So it might be well to carry a supply 
to fill punctured tires. 



BIDING A "BIKW 149 

This is said to be the way to use it. Let 
all the air out of the tire, then with a flat 
piece of wood force the gum into the hole 
— of course the gum must be "chewed" 
first to make it soft. Plaster some over the 
hole, then bind the place with a strip of 
rag on your handkerchief. This done, 
pump in the air and ride with care. 

A broken handle bar is bad, but a sub- 
stitute that will work can be made if you 
have some strong string and a stout pocket 
knife. Cut two sections of a springy sap- 
ling, and bind them securely to the front 
fork, one on either side, and sufficiently 
long to reach just above the broken bar. 
Next tie securely a stout stick of proper 
length to the broken bar, and tie to this 
the end of the uprights. If properly done, 
this will enable you to finish your journey, 
which for a long distance is much pleasant- 
er than walking and leading your wheel. 

A rope tire will often enable the rider 
to reach home. A few yards of clothes- 
line, borrowed, begged, or bought from 
some wayside house, will enable you to 
make a solid tire. Remove the rubber tire, 
tie it to your handle-bar, and take the rope 
and bend one end diagonally across the hol- 
low in the rim of the wheel. Wind the 
rope carefully around, over the bent end of 
the rope; around again alongside of the first 
length until the rim is covered. Keep the 



150 RIDING A "BIKE" 

line tight, and wind it until it fills up the 
hollow and is considerably higher in the 
middle than at the sides. The neater this 
work is done, the more comfortable will be 
your ride home. When the rope tire is 
complete, pry up the side lap and force the 
free end of the rope diagonally under it 
until it comes out on the other side. Draw 
it taut and cut off the end flush with the 
outer wrapping. Now pour water all over 
the rope until it is thoroughly wet; this 
will cause it to shrink and become firm and 
hard. 

Have a stand for your bicycle when not 
in use, and keep the wheel clean and well 
oiled. No boy is worthy to own a tool or 
a toy, or anything else that is perishable, 
if he is too lazy or too careless to have a 
pride in it, and to keep it in the highest 
state of efficiency. 

The very best time to make needed re- 
pairs is when the need is discovered. Never 
wait until the time conies to use the thing 
again. The boy who gets into that habit 
is disqualifying himself for the battle of 
life, in which promptness, accuracy and 
energy are the prime requisites to success. 

If you cannot take care of your things, 
or prefer to resign that duty to others, then 
resign your ownership too, and let some 
more deserving comrades own them. 

I have often wondered why "the rope" 



BIDING A ''BIKE" 151 

• — as our western cowboys call the lariat, 
and the Mexican lariata — has not become 
a national sport, for its proper use requires 
great skill, and it is distinctly an American 
institution. 

Children of the Mexican herders begin 
practicing with the lariat as soon as they 
can coil a rope. I have seen them catching 
cats and chickens with their little lariats, 
and their dexterity surprised me. 

The lariat may be of any length from 
twenty to eighty feet. It consists of a 
long, strong, flexible rope, with a running 
noose at the end thrown. I have seen them 
made of hemp, horse hair and raw hide — 
the latter are by far the best, provided they 
are flexible and soft enough. The raw 
hide is cut and specially tanned, but for 
practice an ordinary thin rope will do. 

The noose is made by fastening a small 
iron eyelet to an end of the rope, and 
through this the other end is drawn. 

The greater part of the rope is held 
coiled in the left hand, while the noose is 
circled above the head with the right, and 
thrown when the proper swing has been 
reached. 

A post makes a good target. It should 
be, to start with, not more than ten feet 
away. After a time the distance can be 
increased, and the nature of the target 
changed. 



152 BIDING A "BIKE" 

You will be surprised, if you try this, at 
the skill you will gain, and the pleasure 
the lariat will aiford to yourself and com- 
panions. 



CHAPTER XXI 

THE OLD SCOTCH GAME OF GOLF — SOME- 
THING ABOUT HOCKEY AND SHINNY 

In Scotland, where the game comes from, 
golf has been pronounced "goif" for more 
than five hundred years. 

Now that our President and other great 
men have taken to golf, everybody reads 
about the popular game, but very few know 
anything about it but the name. To such, 
the following facts may be of use. The 
game is interesting, and its rules can be 
soon learned, but like everything else we 
do for pleasure or profit, it takes a good 
deal of practice before one can pose as an 
expert. Boys take to golf and soon excel 
their seniors. 

The equipment for golf consists of a large 
field, called "the links," to play in, a set of 
sticks or clubs with which to make the 
strokes, and a ball to be hit at. 

The start is made from a point called 
"the tee." The player's purpose is to send 

153 



154 GOLF, HOCKEY AND SHINNY 

the ball, which may be rubber or gutta 
percha, and is about one and three-quarter 
inches in diameter, into a small hole. This 
hole may be from twenty to a hundred or 
more yards away, and the skill consists in 
doing the trick with the fewest possible 
number of strokes. The player who makes 
the most holes with the fewest strokes wins 
the game. This sounds very simple, and 
it is simple to understand, but not so easy 
to do. 

THE LINKS 

Many of the best links are laid out where 
the soil is sandy and the grass sparse and 
stiff. Such links dry quickly after a rain, 
and the ball is easily played and seen. The 
course in this country for the regulation 
game is sometimes three miles long; short- 
er courses can be laid out for informal 
work and practice. The links do not ex- 
tend in a straight line. It is much better 
to have them wind about and end near the 
start. By carefully planning the curves, 
a golf course may be made to occupy lim- 
ited grounds. 

It has become a rule to make eighteen 
holes constitute a full course. In the Uni- 
ted States, however, comparatively few 
courses have more than nine holes, and 
good practice can be had upon a course 
with even a fewer number. 



OOLF, HOCKEY AND SHINNY 155 

The starting-point is called "the teeing- 
ground," and is marked by two whitewash 
lines at right angles to the course, forming 
a parallelogram with the side lines of the 
course five or six yards in length by two 
or three, in breadth. Within the parallelo- 
gram the player places his ball upon a tee 
or small hill of sand or earth from a half 
to three-quarters of an inch high. 

The holes are about four inches in diame- 
ter, and are lined with iron — condensed 
milk cans or similar vessels may be used — 
and the ground for seven or eight feet on 
all sides is more level than the rest of the 
course and is known as the ''putting green." 
The holes are placed at distances varying 
from three hundred to twelve hundred feet 
apart, and are marked by little red flags, 
which are removed when the player ap- 
proaches. 

As a match game consists of thirty-six 
holes, eighteen holes gone twice over give 
the required number; so will nine holes 
gone over four times, or six holes six times, 
or four holes nine times, or three holes 
twelve times. So you see that if your 
ground is limited you need have but three, 
four, six or nine holes, and the fewer the 
holes the fairer becomes the game for stran- 
gers, because in going over them so often 
they learn the ground, and that puts them 
on an even footing with the home players. 



156 GOLF, HOCKEY AND SHINNY 



THE CLUBS 

The golf clubs are something like shinny 
sticks in shape, but modified and better 
made, as the ball must be driven more ac- 
curately and much farther. The heads are 
made of wood or iron. There are a great 
variety of them, but the beginner does not 
need more than four or five. 

The driver, a large club with a long 
shaft; the head is wood. It is used to 
start and when the ball is on the tee. 

Let me add here that when the luxury 
can be afforded, it is usual to employ a 
boy, known as a "caddy" to carry the bag 
or receptacle in which the different clubs 
are kept. 

The brassie is much like the driver, ex- 
cept that it has a brass head or plate on 
the hitting part. It is used for a good 
send when the ball is in a favorable place. 

The cleek and lofter are iron-headed 
clubs, and are used to drive the ball far 
and low. A hundred and twenty yard 
stroke is good, but not unusual. 

The golf ball, as I have said, is made of 
hard rubber, but in learning the game any 
hard ball of medium size will do, and one 
club will be enough with which to practice. 

Hazards are obstructions in the way of 
the ball. 



GOLF, HOCKEY AND SHINNY 15T 

A bunker is a hazard, such as a fence, 
wall, hedge, depression, or trees. 

The ground between the holes should be 
cleared as far as possible of all obstruc- 
tions. Hazards are not objected to by good 
players, as they add to the sport. 

The game called "singles" is where two 
players, each with his own ball, play 
against each other. 

A ''foursomes" is when two players play 
against another two, each side having a 
ball and the partners playing alternately. 

Often a skilled player will match himself 
against a number of inferiors ; this is called 
a three or four ball match. 

SHINNY 

Of course every boy who can wield 
a stick has played at this fine, simple 
old game. One does not need many tools 
for this sport. A stout shinny stick, curved 
at the business end, like the best walking 
sticks, and a ball, or even a chunk of wood, 
if not too heavy, and large, will do. 

The game is played between chosen sides 
under the lead of properly selected cap- 
tains. Two goals, from ten to a hundred 
yards apart, are marked out, and between 
these the ball is placed. 

This done, the captains display their 
skill by stationing their men in such a way 



158 GOLF, HOCKEY AND SHINNY 

that they may guard their respective goals 
if their opponents are driving that way. 

The captains start the ball a-roUing; all 
are free to dash in and strike, taking care 
to guard their own heads and not to hurt 
the heads of the enemy, for this is a con- 
test, not a battle. 

Each party must keep on its own side, 
and each goal gained is a game. 

HOCKEY 

does not differ much from shinny. In this 
game the ball is called a hockey, and it 
does not matter what you call the curved 
sticks. 

The goals are selected, and the sides 
chosen as in shinny, but in this game the 
captains toss up for first strike. When the 
ball is struck, the opposite side tries to stop 
it, and the contest is on. 

When the ball is sent over the oppon- 
ent's goal line, the game is won. 



Winter 



CHAPTER XXII 

ON THE ICE AND SNOW — THE ROYAL SPORT 

OF SKATING, WITH SOME HINTS ON 

SKIING, AND SNOWSHOES 

Outdoor sports in winter are necessarily 
restricted to the thing that can be done in 
the snow or on the ice. But what glorious, 
health-giving, strength-making things they 
are! It is from the land of the stern win- 
ter that the world's greatest men have 
come. 

Usually the frost comes before the snow, 
and with what joy the boys and the girls 
hear the news, brought by a rosy, eager 
comrade: "The ice is strong enough to 
bear." 

Of course, our first experience on the ice 
was when we tried our first slide guided 
by the hand of a stronger and more expert 
companion. How soon we learned to do 
the trick, and what fun there was in ''keep 
the pot a-boiling," while strings of young- 
sters took the slide. What if some did top- 
ple over? No bones were broken, and the 

161 



163 ON THE ICE AND SNOW 

incident always caused a lot of good-na- 
tured laughter. 

Roller skating indoors or on smooth 
roads is certainly a good preparation for 
ice skating, but it is not at all necessary to 
begin that way, any more than it is to 
practice swimming with a support about 
the body. 

It is said the children in Holland learn 
to skate as soon as they leave the cradle. 
Certainly the young South Sea Islanders 
learn to swim at an equally early age. 

My advice is : Begin skating as soon as 
Santa Claus, or some other good fairy gives 
you skates of the right size. Some more 
advice: Never, from first to last, skate 
with your hands in your pockets. Leaves, 
sticks, bits of paper, or similar obstructions 
may check and stop, perhaps throw you, 
and at such times the hands should be 
free to ease the fall. 

In the old days, with the help of the 
blacksmith, the harness maker, and the car- 
penter, boys had to put their own skates 
together. Those were certainly clumsy af- 
fairs, but there was no end of good sport 
in them. 

To-day, the patent, clamp skate, fitting 
snug and securely and without any tight 
straps or tiresome screws, can ' be bought 
cheaply and fastened on in a jiffy. But 
can you use them when on? That is the 



ON THE ICE AND SNOW 163 

question. If you can't, be assured you will 
soon learn, with patience, practice and the 
advice of a more experienced companion. 

WRONG HELP 

I note that some books on skating advise 
the beginner to take a chair to the ice and 
learn on this till confidence is gained. Now 
confidence is never gained by leaning on 
anything or depending on any person. 
Start in to win by having confidence in 
yourself. This applies to your life work 
as well as to .skating. 

When you have mastered your legs 
somewhat, and can move fairly well for- 
ward, it will be quite time for you to learn 
some other way of getting experience and 
fun from the sport. 

Begin the variation by trying to cut a 
forward circle. To begin, you strike out 
on the left foot, with the body leaning 
toward the left, the center of the proposed 
circle. When the weight of the body is on 
the outside edge, the line described by the 
skate runner will be a curve directed out- 
ward. As soon as you find that you can 
coiitinue on that stroke no longer bring the 
right foot quickly forward and down. This 
last must be a short stroke of only suffi- 
cient duration to give you time for another 
outer-edge stroke with your left foot. At 



164 ON THE ICE AND SNOW 

first you will make a very large circle, but 
gradually you will be able to contract the 
dimensions. When you have mastered the 
left-foot circle, try it on the right foot, 
and practice until you are able to go either 
way with equal speed. 

The backward circle, when learned, is 
easier than the forward ring, for the push 
stroke is made with the toe. When going 
backward great force can be given to the 
toe-push stroke by slightly lifting the heel. 

To cut the circle backward, you must 
simply reverse your forward movement. 

To skate backward, work or scull your- 
self along any way, until you are able to 
detect the proper movement and proper 
manner of giving the strokes. This accom- 
plished, you may call yourself a good plain 
skater. 

The spread eagle is one of the first steps 
in the advance from plain to fancy skating. 
Even when well done, it lacks the elements 
of grace, but it is most excellent practice 
to render the limbs supple, and make other 
more graceful tricks possible; and it is a 
favorite performance of boy skaters. 

You must skate straightaway until you 
have gained sufficient headway, then at the 
end of the last stroke turn the toes out so 
that the runners of your skates make a 
straight line, heel to heel, one skate follow- 
ing the other. In this position you will 



ON THE ICE AND SNOW 165 

glide over the ice until the momentum first 
gained is exhausted. At first the beginner 
will be only partially successful, but gradu- 
ally he will be able to describe a wide circle 
forward, and in a little while gain sufficient 
control of his feet to slide across the skating 
pond in a straight line. 

The spread eagle backward will be 
found more difficult, for it necessitates 
turning the toes out until they point back- 
ward. In performing this last feat, it is 
no easy matter to keep your balance, but 
perfection comes with practice, and soon 
the boy who devotes time to practice will 
excite the admiration of his comrades by 
the ease with which he turns either for- 
ward or backward. During his practice 
the beginner will undoubtedly bend his 
knees, but after he has reached that point 
of excellence where his whole mind need 
not be centered on his feet, he may learn 
gradually to straighten his legs until at 
last he can do the spread eagle forward 
and backward without looking like a strad- 
dle bug. 

A ring can be made without lifting your 
skates from the ice. This is called a spread- 
eagle circle, and it is cut by spreading the 
feet. The skater must learn to keep his 
feet moving, first the right foot forward 
and the left foot back, then the left foot 
forward and right foot back, always with 



166 ON THE ICE AND SNOW 

toes turned out spread-eagle fashion. When 
properly done, this motion will cause the 
skater to glide around in a circle, his feet 
moving in a most bewildering manner, 
while they weave a pretty grape-vine pat- 
tern on the ice. 

It would take a volume properly to tell 
\11 the possibilities of skating, and the ice 
games, like shinny, and curling. But the 
boy who can manage the movements al- 
ready indicated will be sure to learn by 
himself the more advanced art of this fine 
sport. 

SNOW SHOES 

are not so well known in the United States 
as in Canada and throughout the St. Law- 
rence valley. 

Snow shoes are shaped very much like 
tennis rackets, and are made in much the 
same way and of much the same material. 
They are from thirty to thirty-six inches 
in length, and about one-third that in width. 
The broad point is to the front, and some 
eight inches back of this the foot is fastened 
by means of straps to the front and sides. 
The framework can be of light willow or 
strong rattan. The meshes should be closer 
than in a racket, and the best are made of 
water-proofed rawhide. 

It requires much practice to become ex- 



ON THE ICE AND SNOW 16T 

pert in the use of the snow shoe; but once 
the skill is acquired, twice the distance, over 
soft snow, can be made in the day, as com- 
pared with the average foot man on ordi- 
nary ground. 

Without snow shoes, winter travel would 
be well nigh impossible over large areas of 
British North America. We are indebted 
to the Indians for this valuable aid to loco- 
motion. 

SKIING 

pronounced in Norwegian "sheeting" — is 
the great winter sport of the Norwegians 
and Swedes. The sport is fast being in- 
troduced into this country and is gaining 
in popularity in every place where the two 
requisites — snow and a long, steep hill — 
can be had. 

The ski is a strip of ash or spruce wood, 
turned up in front like a sled runner, and 
smooth and straight grained. The length 
varies from six to ten feet, the width from 
three to four inches, and the thickness from 
a third to three-fourths of an inch. 

The strap, attached by screws to the mid- 
dle of the ski, is fastened over the toe part 
of the foot, leaving the heel free to rise and 
fall 

Skies are hard to manage going up hill^ 
but on a level of soft snow a great pace 



168 ON THE ICE AND SNOW 

can be kept up. But it is in going down 
hill, and leaping from a "jounce" that the 
skier is at his best. It is not unusual for 
experts to jump one hundred and twenty- 
feet from rise to fall. 



CHAPTER XXIII 

coasting; sleds of many kinds — the 
toboggan 

Long before the strong, lig'M, machine- 
made sled was put on the market or even 
thought of, the American boy was his own 
sled-maker, and if this sled was not so 
sightly, it certainly got there as effectively 
as does its modern rival. 

The best of the old-time sleds were made 
by cutting down a small oak, beech, or 
maple tree that had a promising curve at 
the root. This was dressed, then sawed 
down the middle, so as to make the two 
runners. Through each runner six holes 
were bored from the top, each pair of holes 
about two inches apart. Into the holes were 
driven wooden pegs to hold the three 
benches. The pegs were long enough to go 
through the two stringers that ran in line 
with the runners. Over this the frame was 
laid. The bottoms of the runners, when 
the material could be had, were shod with 
thick hoop iron, the nails being counter- 

169 



270 COASTING-SLEDS 

sunk. In the center curve of the runners, 
holes were bored for the drawing rope, and 
all was ready for the snow. 

A quicker way was to saw out the proper 
length for runners from an inch, hardwood 
board, curve the fronts by means of a 
draw-knife, then connect the runners by 
ijraces, and cover with a frame of lighter 
material. These sleds, when shod at the 
blacksmith shop with half-curved iron 
shoes, were things to delight in, and two of 
them, properly hitched, made a fine "bob." 

The bob sled is superior in every way to 
the old long sled which delighted the 
grandfathers of the present boys. The old- 
fashioned sleds were steered by the boy in 
front kicking with his heels on the frozen 
snow, or the boy at the stern by dragging 
one foot behind as a rudder. This answers 
very well for the common sled, but when 
the sled is seven, eight, or ten feet long, 
and loaded underneath with pig iron to give 
it weight, the boy in front who steers has 
a difficult and exceedingly dangerous task, 
especially if the hill is steep and icy; and 
it is next to impossible to steer such a craft 
from the stern by dragging one foot be- 
hind. 

The double-runner is much lighter and 
very much easier to steer on account of 
the front sled being arranged so that it 
can be moved independently of the rear 



COASTING-SLEDS 171 

sled, for a turn to the right or the left 
causes the "bob" to take the direction indi- 
cated by the front runners; but double- 
runners steered with a wheel, lever or yoke 
in front, are very dangerous, as the steers- 
man, in case of an accident, is thrown 
against the steering apparatus, usually with 
serious results. 

The safety double-runner does away with 
serious results, having a bridle with which 
it is steered. It also does away with the 
danger of collision by having an automatic 
brake that will stop it, in times of danger, 
within the distance of its own length. These 
are qualities which will be appreciated by 
all who "slide down hill," as we called it 
Vv^hen I was a lad, or who are fond of coast- 
ing, as our school-readers called it then, 
and as every one calls it now. 

Double-runners, or bob sleds, can be 
made at home, but the work requires so 
much varied material, so many tools, and 
so much skill that I shall not tell how the 
thing is done. A number of boys, who de- 
sire to own a bob sled in partnership, can 
have the work done by a wagon-maker, 
who knows just how, and has all the mate- 
rial to hand. Such sleds, and they are usu- 
ally well made, can be purchased at reason- 
able prices and of any size from establish- 
ments that deal in such articles. These can 
be found in any of our large cities. 



173 COASTING-SLEDS 

The safe and sane sled, for the ordinary 
youngster, and the average hill, is that 
which has a capacity for two — one is still 
better — and which is steered by sitting 
astern and keeping one leg back to act as 
a runner. 

TOBOGGANING 

The toboggan is much used in Canada, 
where the Indians taught the first whites 
how to make and use it, and has become 
popular in the northern states, particularly 
along the Great Lakes. It is made of smooth, 
closely joined, flexible boards, turned up in 
front by being steam heated. The tobog- 
gan lies flat on the ground and may be of 
any length from six to twelve or even more 
feet. 

The passengers squat on furs or other 
coverings laid flat on the toboggan. The 
steerer sits behind and controls the direc- 
tion by a trailing pole and sometimes with 
one foot. 

Many Canadian cities have constructed 
toboggan slides for the use of the people. 
The most famous of these is at Montreal. 
This slide has a "joust" or obstruction at 
the bottom, which causes the toboggan and 
its occupants to leap into the air in a way 
that delights the experts and brings alarm 
to those who are taking their first ride. 



C0A8TING-8LED8 173 

But the healthy boy does not Hmit his 
winter sports to skates and sleds. Without 
either of these appliances no end of fun 
can be had in the snow itself. 

It would be a waste of time to describe 
snowballing, which may be made to afford 
pleasure, but which as too often done brings 
discomfort to the ones unexpectedly at- 
tacked. 

A SNOW BATTLE 

Now, a snow battle, if properly managed, 
is a different matter, and calls for that en- 
durance and tact that distinguishes the true 
soldier. 

The two selected captains toss up in the 
usual manner for first choice of men. Then 
alternately, as in a spelling bee, each 
chooses a soldier until all are taken. The 
taw lines are then drawn, about thirty feet 
apart, and two flag staffs with colored 
handkerchiefs for flags are erected in each 
camp. To bear the enemy's flag to your 
own camp, that is, over the taw line, wins 
the victory for your side. Tackling is al- 
lowed, as in football, and is limited by the 
same rules. No boy bearing the mark of a 
snowball on chest or back is allowed to take 
further part in the game, as he is consid- 
ered to be a dead soldier, but the dead sol- 
diers may coach their comrades as often 



174 COA8TINO'8LED8 

as they please. No tripping, no striking, 
no ice balls, and no "soakers" (wet snow- 
"balls) are allowed. 

Snow tag is another good game. Count 
out for "It." While "It" takes his place at 
the hub of the wheel, the other players 
scatter around the circumference or rim, 
and the word "ready" is given. "It" then 
darts out one of the "spoke" paths and en- 
deavors to tag some one of the other boys, 
and the fun begins. Two cannot pass each 
other on the narrow paths, and the fleeing 
boys often step on each others' heels, trip 
and tumble head first into the deep snow, 
forming an easy prey for "It"; but again 
the lads will dance around in a most pro- 
voking manner, and as "It" darts up one 
spoke toward the rim, the players dart 
down the other toward the hub, and show 
great skill in eluding "It." 



CHAPTER XXIV 

SOME HINTS ON GENERAL ATHLETICS, IN- 
CLUDING WALKING, RUNNING AND 
JUMPING 

I do not think the advice I have given, 
as to the games appropriate for each sea- 
son would be at all complete, if I did not 
give some advice that will be useful for 
all seasons and every day in the year. 

To the boy the enjoyment of the sport 
is the first thing to be considered, but it 
is not the only thing. Our lives are often 
affected for good or ill by very little 
things. Injuries have been received by boys 
in sport that marred all their after lives. 

It is natural for the young to delight in 
exercise. It is by taking it that they de- 
velop, but the development, to be of value, 
must be along sensible lines. 

Every healthy boy wants to be an ath- 
lete; wants to excel in some line, and as 
this ambition is reasonable, it should not be 
discouraged. The youth eager to win in 
his sports is not apt to be found lagging 
1T5 



176 GENERAL ATHLETICS 

when he takes up the more serious business 
of life. 

Competition is said to be the Hfe of trade, 
and it certainly adds greatly to our interest 
in sports, but the boy who starts in to 
learn by trying to compete is doomed to 
failure. There would be more success in 
the end if we learned to go slower and so 
became more thorough in the beginning. 

There are certain exercises that every 
athlete must take to have a good physique, 
and the very first, and by far the most 
useful of these, is walking. 

WALKING 

Can you walk? I hear you laughing at 
the question; but let me change it slightly 
and ask, *'Can you walk properly?" 

"Of course I can," you reply. "I walk 
just like other folks who are not lame." 

Now very few people walk properly, and 
no two people, unless it be soldiers or oth- 
ers who have been drilled to the exercise, 
walk alike. Just watch and see for your- 
self. 

The good walker is always the graceful, 
easy walker. He stands erect, but not stif- 
fly. His shoulders are well thrown back. 
He keeps his mouth closed, except when 
talking, and he breathes and exhales 
through his nostrils as the wise God meant 



GENERAL ATHLETICS 177 

him to do. His clothes fit him loosely and 
comfortably. He steps naturally, and with- 
out a trying stride, or a short step mincing- 
gait, as if he wore hobbles. He walks by 
lifting his feet and not by raising his shoul- 
ders. And he wears shoes or other foot 
gear that do not breed corns or bunions. 

Unless in a great hurry the walk, even 
the brisk walk, should never exceed three 
miles an hour; good heel and toe walkers 
have made forty miles without fatigue in 
ten hours, but this power comes only after 
long practice. 

Walking is the very best, as it is the 
very cheapest, form of exercise, and it is 
best enjoyed on a country road with a 
cheerful companion. 

Remember in all your exercising that 
good health is the one great object. Sup- 
press all ambition to be merely strong. 
Many brutes are stronger than many of 
the strongest m.en, and many strong men 
have gone to pieces where lighter but more 
enduring men have come through the or- 
deal fresh and unharmed. This I have 
I often noted in war times, when soldiers 
jwere called on to make a forced march over 
[trying roads and in a downpour of rain. 

Endurance is the great thing to strive 
I for. The man who lasts is the man who 
[wins. Therefore, in your walks, particu- 
larly when you are learning to walk well. 



178 GENERAL ATHLETICS 

like an Indian or a soldier, never try to do 
more than can be done without making too 
great a demand on your bodily strength. 

RU'NNING 

Running is a fine exercise, provided al- 
ways that it be done in season and in rea- 
son. To do it in reason you must start in 
by acquiring the skill to run and the en- 
durance to keep it up. 

There is one organ which if it stopped 
for a minute, the owner would be dead; 
that is the heart. Yet many young ath- 
letes act as if they were not aware that they 
had hearts. 

No exercise that requires sudden violent 
effort, like fast rowing, or a hundred-yard 
dash in running, can be undertaken with- 
out serious effect to the heart. The An- 
dean Indians will run, lightly and easily, 
at the rate of ten miles an hour, and keep 
it up for ten hours without rest, but you 
cannot induce them to make a short dash 
at high speed; they do not want to feel 
the warning thump of the heart. 

In learning to run, breathe as in walking, 
keeping the body slightly bent forward, 
and the elbows gripped close to the sides. 
Under no circumstances start out by com- 
peting with any one, or by trying to run 
against time. Such a course will result in 



GENERAL ATHLETICS 179^ 

final failure, and may bring on a serious 
injury. 

The jog trot is the thing to start in with. 
Try it for a week or two, and you will be 
surprised at the ease with which you can 
do it. At first a mile is long enough for 
a run. After a month you can do two 
miles without as much fatigue. Finally, if 
the gait be not too fast, you can keep it up 
for hours. 

After you have mastered the jog, it will 
be time enough to quicken the pace into- 
a run, not your swiftest run, mark you, but 
a run that you can keep up for a mile, with 
as little exhaustion as you did your first 
mile trot. 

It is only by this slow, pleasant training, 
that you can ever learn to walk and run 
well, but when you have learned you will 
be paid for the effort, and then if the time 
comes to test your speed you will be ready 
to respond. 

Jumping is closely related to running. It 
is an exercise in which boys delight, but 
which they seldom practice so as to achieve 
any skill. 

We divide this exercise into standing 
and running jumps, and each of these can 
be subdivided into high and broad jumps. 

In running contests, hurdles or other ob- 
structions are placed in the path of the run- 
ner. These hurdles vary in height, but if 



180 GENERAL ATHLETICS 

you want to learn, start in with one or two 
about as high as your knee. Of course, you 
could take them standing, and it is not a 
bad exercise, but learn to take them at a 
moderate run. When you can do this with 
ease, increase the number or the closeness 
of the hurdles and add to the length of the 
run. 

After a time you can take more and 
higher hurdles and lengthen the run, but 
never do either if you find your heart beat- 
ing, or that the effort brings fatigue. 

I do not think the running high jump 
pays for the effort. It is spectacular, that 
is all ; not so the running broad jump. This 
may be of use. It is safe and sane, and 
with practice it is surprising the distance 
that can be covered. 

After violent exercise of any kind, be 
sure to take a bath and a brisk rub down. 
If this cannot be had, a towel well soaked 
in cold water will make a good substitute, 
if you dry down with another towel. 

If your clothes are wet and you are ex- 
ercising, they may be allowed to dry on 
you with safety, but if you cannot do this, 
get dry clothes if possible. I have known 
sturdy boys to contract rheumatism from 
wet clothes; and they never got over it. 

In conclusion, let me advise common 
sense. Think before you act, even when 
you are out for sport. 



CHAPTER XXV 

BATTLE CRIES, HAILING SHOUTS, AND 
COLLEGE YELLS 

The American Indians, like the uncivi- 
lized of all lands, had their own peculiar 
battle cry or war-whoop, which it is im- 
possible to reproduce by letters. During 
our Civil War the Confederates gave a 
thrilling imitation of it in their famous 
"'Rebel Yell," which every old soldier re- 
calls with more or less admiration. 

The ancient Greeks joined in battle with 
shouts of ''Eleleu !" The Welsh cry was 
"Ubub!" from whence comes our word 
hubbub, meaning a confusion. The Irish 
war shout was nearly like that of the 
Greek, being ''Ullulu !" The Scotch clans 
had each its own shout or slogan ; the pi- 
broch being the chant of the march to 
battle. 

Of old, the Hungarian horseman, when 
charging shouted "Huzza !" and so the name 
Hussar is given to the light cavalry regi- 
ments of many of the European armies. 
181 



182 BATTLE CRIES 

The Australian herders have a hailing 
cry, learned from the natives, which, prop- 
erly done, carries a great distance. It 
sounds like "Goo-ee!" the first syllable 
being made deep in the chest, and the other 
a shrill head note. 

The Yaqui Indians of northern Mexico 
take their name from their peculiar war cry, 
"Ya-kee," which is produced like the Aus- 
tralian coo-ee. I have heard this thrilling 
cry for a distance of over one mile in the 
Sierra Madre mountains. 

All boys, whether bound for college or 
not, are always interested in what are 
known as "College Yells." Each college 
has its own yell, and in some of them great 
pains, if not great originality, is shown in 
the construction of the words. Here are 
a few: 

Princeton — "Hurrah! Hurrah! Hurrah! 
Tiger-siss-boom-ah! PRINCETON!" And 
the sturdy sons of 

7fl/^_-Rah! Rah! Rah! Rah! Rah! 
Rah! Rah! Rah! Rah! YALE!" quickly 
and sharply enunciated. 

Harvard boys cry, with long-drawn 
deep notes, "Rah! rah! rah! Rah! rah! 
rah! Rah ! rah ! rah ! HARVARD !" 

Cornell — "Cornell I yell ! yell ! yell ! 
CORNELL!" 

Williams College — "Rah ! rah ! rah I 
yums ! yams ! yums ! WILLYUMS !" 



BATTLE CRIES 183 

Trinity College — "Rah ! rah ! rah ! Trin- 
ity! Boom-rah! Boom-rah! TRIN-EYE- 

TEE r 

Wesleyan College — "Rah! rah! rah! 
rah! Wesleyan! Rah! rah! rah! rah! 

Brown College — "Rah, rah, rah, rah! 
BROWN !" 

Colorado College — "Rah ! rah ! rah ! 
Pike's Peak or bust! Colorado College! 
Yell we MUST!" 

The Leland Stanford, Jr.—"Wah hoo! 
Ya hoo! L. S. J. U.! STANFORD!" 

Dartmouth College— "Ui ! hi ! hi ! Rah ! 
rah! rah! D-d-d-d-Dartmouth, wah, who, 
wah!" or, "Wah, who, wah! Wah, who, 
wah! Da, di, di, Dartmouth! Wah, who 
wah I" 

Union C oil e g e — "Rah, rah, rah ! 
U-NT-O-N. Hikah ! hikah ! hikah !" 

University of Illinois — "Rah, hoo, rah! 
Zipp, boom, ah! Hip-zoo! Rah-zoo. Jim- 
my blow your bazoo! Ip-sidi-iki U. off I. 
campaign !" 

Hanover— "H^n, Han! HANOVER!" 

Westminster — "Rah, rah, rah! Oh, yes, 
sir ! Vive-la, Vive-la ! WESTMINSTER !" 

Cornell, of Iowa — "Zip-siss-boom ! Cor- 
cor-nell! C-C. tiger-la! Zipp-siss-hur- 
rah !" 

Amherst — "Rah ! rah ! rah !" etc., and ter- 
minating with the name of their institu- 
tion. 



184 BATTLE CRIES 

Boston University — "Boston, B-B-BOS- 
TON! Varsity! Varsity! Varsity! Rah! 
rah! rah!" 

Rutgers — "Rah, rah, rah! Bow-wow- 
wow! RUTGERS!" 

Rochester University — "Waxico, waxico, 
waxico, wax ! Waxico, waxico, waxico, 
wax !" Brek-k-ks — Brek-k-ks, ah-h-ah ! 
ROCHESTER!" 

University of Washington — ^"U. of W. ! 
Hiah ! Hiah ! U. of W. ! U. of W. ! Siah ! 
Siah! Shooken' Shookem! WASHING- 
TON !" 

Hobart College — "Hip-ho-bart ! Hip-ho- 
bart! Hip-ho, hip-ho, HIP-HO-BART!" 

Syracuse University — "Srah — Srah — 
Srah Sy-ra-cuse !" 

This Hst by no means comprises all the 
college cries, but it will serve to illustrate 
the most striking of them. 

Even the women's colleges have their 
■own distinctive cries, and for oddness they 
quite equal those of the men. And now 
the high schools, and even the separate 
classes and school societies are indulging 
in original cries. But so long as these 
things keep up the class spirit and make 
for sound lungs and high spirits, why 
should old fogies object? 



CHAPTER XXVI 

CLEVER TRICKS WORTH KNOW- 
ING 

THE VANISHING KNOTS 

For this trick you must use a silk hand- 
kerchief. Twisting it, rope-fashion, and 
grasping it by the middle with both hands. 
You must request one of the spectators to 
tie the two ends togethcr„ , He does so, but 
you tell him he has not tied them half tight 
enough, and you yourself pull them stilL 
tighter. A second and a third knot are 
made in the same manner, the handker- 
chief being drawn tighter by yourself after 
each knot is made. Finally, take the hand- 
kerchief, and covering the knots with the 
loose part, you hand it to some one to hold. 
Breathing on it, you request him to shake 
out the handkerchief, when all the knots 
are found to have disappeared. 

When the performer apparently tightens 
the knot, he in reality only strains one end 
of the handkerchief, grasping it above and 

185 



186 CLEVER TRICKS 

below the knot. This pulls that end of the 
handkerchief out of its twisted condition 
and into a straight line, round which the 
other end of the handkerchief remains 
twisted; in other words, converts the knot 
into a slip-knot. After each successive knot 
he still straightens this same end of the 
handkerchief. This end, being thus made 
straight, would naturally be left longer 
than the other, which is twisted round and 
round it. This tendency the performer 
counteracts by drawing it partially back 
through the slip-knot at each pretended 
tightening. When he finally covers over 
the knots, which he does with the left hand, 
he holds the straightened portion of the 
handkerchief, immediately behind the knots, 
between the first finger and thumb of the 
right hand, and therewith, in the act of 
covering over the knots, draws this straight- 
ened portion completely out of the slip- 
knot. 

THE DANCING SAILOR 

The Dancing Sailor is a figure cut out of 
cardboard, eight or nine inches in height, 
and with its arms and legs cut out sepa- 
rately, and attached to the trunk with 
thread in such a manner as to hang per- 
fectly free. The mode of exhibiting it is as 
follows : The performer, taking a seat 
facing the company, with his legs slightly 



CLEVER TRICKS 187 

apart, places the figure on the ground be- 
tween them. As might be expected, it falls 
flat and lifeless, but after a few mesmeric 
passes it is induced to stand upright, though 
without visible support, and, on a lively 
piece of music being played, dances to it, 
keeping time, and ceasing as soon as the 
music ceases. 

The secret lies in the fact that, from leg 
to leg of the performer, at about the 
height of the figure from the ground, is 
fixed (generally by means of a couple of 
bent pins), a fine black silk thread, of 
eighteen or twenty inches in length. This 
allows him to move about without any hin- 
drance. On each side of the head of the 
figure is a little slanting cut, tending in a 
perpendicular direction, and about half an 
inch in length. The divided portions of the 
cardboard are bent back a little, thus form- 
ing two "hooks," so to speak, at the sides 
of the head. When the performer takes 
his seat, as before mentioned, the separa- 
tion of his legs draws the silk comparatively 
taut, though, against a moderately dark 
background, it remains wholly invisible. 
When he first places the figure on the 
ground, he does so simply, and the figure 
naturally falls. He makes a few sham mes- 
meric passes over it, but still it falls. At 
the third and fourth attempt, however, he 
places it so that the little hooks already 



188 CLEVER TRICKS 

mentioned just catch the thread, and the 
figure is thus kept upright. When the mu- 
sic commences, the smallest motion, or pre- 
tence of keeping time with the feet is 
enough to start the sailor in a vigorous 
hornpipe. 

CONJURING WITH COINS 

Coin-conjuring has its own peculiar 
sleights, which it will be necessary for the 
student to practice diligently before he can 
hope to attain much success in this direc- 
tion. 

The first faculty which the novice must 
seek to acquire is that of "palming" — i.e., 
secretly holding an object in the open hand 
by the contraction of the palm. To ac- 
quire this power, take a half-crown, florin, 
or quarter (these being the most conven- 
ient in point of size), and lay it on the 
palm of the open hand. Now close the 
hand very slightly, and if you have placed 
the coin on the right spot (which a few 
trials will quickly indicate), the contrac- 
tion of the palm around its edges will hold 
it securely, and you may move the hand 
and arm in any direction without fear of 
dropping it. You should next accustom 
yourself to use the hand and fingers easily 
and naturally, while still holding the coin 
as described. A very little practice will 



CLEVER TRICKS 189 

enable you to do this. You must bear in 
mind while practicing always to keep the 
inside of the palm either downward or 
toward your own body, as any reverse 
movement would expose the concealed coin. 

PASSES 

Being thoroughly master of this first les- 
son, you may proceed to the study of the 
various "passes." All of the passes have 
the same object — viz., the apparent transfer 
of an article from one hand to the other,, 
though such article really remains in the 
hand which it has apparently just quitted. 
As the same movement frequently repeated 
Ivould cause suspicion, and possibly detec- 
tion, it is desirable to acquire different 
ways of effecting this object. It should be 
here mentioned that the term "palming," 
v/hich we have so far used as meaning sim- 
ply the act of holding any article, is also 
employed to signify the act of placing any 
article in the palm by one or the other of 
various passes. The context will readily 
indicate in which of the two senses the 
term is used in any given passage. 

Pass I. — Take the coin in the right hand, 
between the second and third fingers and 
the thumb, letting it, however, really be 
supported by the fingers, and only steadied 
by the thumb. Now move the thumb out 



190 CLEVER TRICKS 

of the way, and close the second and third 
fingers, with the coin balanced on them, 
into the palm. If the coin was rightly 
placed in the first instance, you will find that 
this motion puts it precisely in the position 
above described as the proper one for palm- 
ing; and on again extending the fingers 
the coin is left palmed. When you can do 
this easily with the hand at rest, you must 
practice doing the same thing with the 
right hand in motion toward the left, which 
should meet it open, but should close the 
moment that the fingers of the right hand 
touch its palm, as though upon the coin 
which you have by this movement feigned 
to transfer to it. The left hand must 
thenceforward remain closed, as if holding 
the coin, and the right hand hang loosely 
open, as if empty. 

PALMING 

In the motion of "palming," the two 
hands must work in harmony, as in the 
genuine act of passing an article from the 
one hand to the other. The left hand must 
therefore rise to meet the right, but should 
not begin its journey until the right hand 
begins its own. Nothing looks more awk- 
ward or unnatural than to see the left hand 
extended, with open palm, before the right 
hand has begun to move toward it. 



CLEVER TRICKS 191 

Pass 2. — This is somewhat easier than 
Pass I, and may sometimes be usefully 
substituted for it. Take the coin edgeways 
between the first and third fingers of the 
right hand, the sides of those fingers press- 
ing against the edges of the coin, and the 
middle finger steadying it from behind. 
Carry the right hand toward the left, and 
at the same time move the thumb swiftly 
over the face of the coin till the top joint 
passes its outer edge, then bend the thumb, 
and the coin will be found to be securely 
nipped between that joint and the junction 
of the thumb with the hand. As in the 
last case, the left hand must be closed the 
moment the right hand touches it ; and the 
right must thenceforth be held with the 
thumb bent slightly inward toward the 
palm, so that the coin may be shielded from 
the view of the spectators. This is an es- 
pecially quick mode of palming, and if 
properly executed the illusion is perfect. 

Pass 3. — Hold the left hand palm up- 
ward, with the coin in position. Move 
the right hand toward the left, and let the 
fingers simulate the motion of picking up 
the coin, and instantly close. At the same 
moment slightly close the left hand, so as 
to contract the palm around the coin, and 
drop the hand, letting it hang loosely by 
your side. 



192 CLEVER TRICKS 



THE VANISHING TRICK 

A word of caution may here be desirable. 
These "passes" must by no means be re- 
garded as being themselves tricks, but only 
as processes to be used in the performance 
of tricks. If the operator, after pretending 
to pass the coin, say from the right hand 
to the left, and showing that it had van- 
ished from the left hand, were to allow his 
audience to discover that it had all along 
remained in his right hand, they might ad- 
mire the dexterity with which he had in 
this instance deceived their eyes, but they 
would henceforth guess half the secret of 
any trick in which palming was employed. 
If it is necessary immediately to repro- 
duce the coin, the performer should do so 
by appearing to find it in the hair or whis- 
kers of a spectator, or in any other place 
that may suit his purpose, remembering 
always to indicate beforehand that it has 
passed to such a place, thereby diverting 
the general attention from himself. As the 
coin is already in his hand, he has only to 
drop it to his finger-tips as the hand reaches 
the place he has named, in order, to all ap- 
pearance, to take it from thence. 

The various passes may be employed not 
only to cause the disappearance of an arti- 
cle, as above described, but to secretly 



CLEVER TRIORS 193 

change it for a substitute of similar ap- 
pearance. These exchanges are of contin- 
ual use in conjuring; indeed, we may al- 
most say that three parts of its marvels de- 
pends on them. Such an exchange having 
been made, the substitute is left in sight 
of the audience, while the performer, hav- 
ing thus secretly gained possession of the 
original, disposes of it as may be necessary 
for the purpose of the trick. 

With this brief practical production, we 
proceed to describe a few of the simpler 
tricks with coins. 

HEADS OR TAILS 

You borrow a quarter, and spin it, or in- 
vite some other person to spin it, on the 
table (which must be without a cloth). 
You allow it to spin itself out, and imme- 
diately announce, without seeing it, whether 
it has fallen head or tail upward. This 
may be repeated any number of times with 
the same result, though you may be blind- 
folded, and placed at the further end of 
the apartment. 

The secret lies in the use of a quarter of 
your own, on one face of which (say on 
the "tail" side) you have cut at the extreme 
edge a little notch, thereby causing a mi- 
nute point or tooth of metal to project from 
that side of the coin. If a coin so prepared 



194 CLEVER TRICKS 

be spun on the table, and should chance to 
go down with the notched side upward, it 
will run down like an ordinary coin, with 
a long continuous "whirr," the sound grow- 
ing fainter and fainter till it finally ceases ; 
but if it should run down with the notched 
side downward, the friction of the point 
against the table will reduce this final whirr 
to half its ordinary length, and the coin 
will finally go down with a sort of "flop." 
The difference of sound is not sufficiently 
marked to attract the notice of the specta- 
tors, but is perfectly distinguishable by an 
attentive ear. If, therefore, you have 
notched the coin on the "tail" side, and it 
runs down slowly, you will cry "tail"; if 
quickly, "head." 

If you professedly use a borrowed coin, 
you must adroitly change it for your own, 
under pretence of showing how to spin it, 
or the like. 

ODD OR EVEN ,* OR, THE MYSTERIOUS 
ADDITION 

You take a handful of coins, and invite 
another person to do the same, and to ascer- 
tain privately whether the number he has 
taken is odd or even. You request the 
company to observe that you have not asked 
him a single question, but that you are 
able, notwithstanding, to divine and coun- 



CLEVER TRICKS 195 

teract his most secret intentions, and that 
you will, in proof of this, yourself take a 
number of coins and add them to those 
he has taken, when, if his number was odd, 
the total shall be even; if his number was 
even, the total shall be odd. Requesting^ 
him to drop the coins he holds into a hat, 
held on high by one of the company, you 
drop in a certain number on your own ac- 
count. He is now asked whether his num- 
ber was odd or even; and, the coins be- 
ing counted, the total number proves to be 
as you stated, exactly the reverse. The 
experiment is tried again, with different 
numbers, but the result is the same. 

The secret lies in the simple arithmet- 
ical fact, that if you add an odd number 
to an even number, the result will be odd; 
if you add an odd number to an odd num- 
ber, the result will be even. You have 
only to take care, therefore, that the num- 
ber you yourself add, whether large or 
small, shall always be odd. 

TO RUB ONE DIME INTO THREE 

This is a simple little parlor trick, but 
will sometimes occasion a good deal of 
wonderment. Procure three dimes of the 
same issue, and privately stick two of them 
with wax to the under side of a table, at 
about half an inch from the edge, and eight 



196 CLEVER TRICKS 

or ten inches apart. Announce to the com- 
pany that you are about to teach them how 
to make money. Turn up your sleeves, and 
take the third dime in your right hand, 
drawing particular attention to its date and 
general appearance, and indirectly to the 
fact that you have no other coin concealed 
in your hands. Turning back the table 
cover, rub the dime with the ball of the 
thumb backward and forward on the edge 
of the table. In this position your fingers 
will naturally be below the edge. After 
rubbing for a few seconds, say : 'Tt is near- 
ly done, for the dime is getting hot," and, 
after rubbing a moment or two longer with 
increased rapidity, draw the hand away 
sharply, bringing away with it one of the 
concealed dimes, which you exhibit as pro- 
duced by the friction. Leaving the waxed 
dime on the table, and again showing that 
you have but one coin in your hands, re- 
peat the operation with the remaining dime. 

THE CAPITAL Q 

Take a number of coins, say from five- 
and-twenty to thirty, and arrange them in 
the form of the letter Q, making the "tail" 
consist of some six or seven coins. Then 
invite some person (during your absence 
from the room) to count any number he 
pleases, beginning at the tip of the tail 



CLEVER TRICKS 197 

and travelling up the left side of the circle, 
touching each coin as he does so ; then to 
work back again from the coin at which 
he stops (caUing such coin one), this time, 
however, not returning down the tail, but 
continuing round the opposite side of the 
circle to the same number. During this 
process you retire, but on your return you 
indicate with unerring accuracy the coin at 
which he left off. In order to show (ap- 
parently) that the trick does not depend 
on any arithmetical principle, you recon- 
struct the Q, or invite the spectators to do 
so, with a different number of coins, but the 
result is the same. 

The solution lies in the fact that the coin 
at which the spectator ends will necessarily 
be at the same distance from the root of 
the tail as there are coins in the tail itself. 
Thus, suppose that there are five coins in 
the tail, and that the spectator makes up 
his mind to count eleven. He commences 
from the tip of the tail, and counts up the 
left side of the circle. This brings him to 
the sixth coin beyond the tail. He then 
retrogrades, and calling that coin "one," 
counts eleven in the opposite direction. 
This necessarily brings him to the fifth coin 
from the tail on the opposite side, being 
the length of the tail over and above those 
coins which are common to both processes. 
If he chooses ten, twelve, or any other 



198 CLEVER TRICKS 

number, he will still, in counting back 
again, end at the same point. 

The rearrangement of the coins which is 
apparently intended to make the trick more 
surprising, is really designed, by altering 
the length of the tail, to shift the position 
of the terminating coin. If the trick were 
performed two or three times in succession, 
with the same number of coins in the tail, 
the spectators could hardly fail to observe 
that the same final coin was always indi- 
cated, and thereby to gain a clue to the se- 
cret. The number of coins in the circle 
itself is quite immaterial. 

THE WANDERING DIME 

Have ready two dimes, each slightly 
waxed on one side. Borrow a dime, and 
secretly exchange it for one of the waxed 
ones, laying the latter waxed side upper- 
most on the table. Let any one draw two 
squares of ordinary card-board. Take them 
in the left hand, and, transferring them to 
the right, press the second waxed dime 
against the center of the undermost, to 
which it will adhere. Lay this card (which 
we will call a) on the table, about eighteen 
inches from the dime which is already 
there, and cover such dime with the other 
card, b. Lift both cards a little way from 
the table, to show that the dime is under 



CLEVER TRICKS 199 

card a, and that there is (apparently) 
nothing under card b. As you replace them, 
press lightly on the center of card a. You 
may now make the dime appear under 
whichever card you like, remembering that, 
if you wish the dime not to adhere, you 
must bend the card slightly upward in tak- 
ing it from the table; if otherwise, take it 
up without bending. 

THE MAGIC COVER AND VANISHING PENNIES 

For the purpose of this trick, you require 
half a dozen cents, of which the center por- 
tion has been cut out, leaving each a mere 
rim of metal. Upon these is placed a com- 
plete cent, and the whole are connected to- 
gether by a rivet, running through the 
whole thickness of the pile. When placed 
upon the table, with the complete coin up- 
ward, they have all the appearance of a 
pile of ordinary pennies, the slight lateral 
play allowed by the rivet aiding the illu- 
sion. A little leather cap (shaped some- 
thing like a fez, with a httle button on the 
top, and of such size as to fit loosely over 
the pile of cents) with an ordinary die, 
such as backgammon is played with, ■ com- 
plete the necessary apparatus. 

You begin by drawing attention to your 
magic cap and die, and in order to exhibit 
their mystic powers, you request the loan 



300 CLEVER TRICKS 

of half a dozen cents (the number must, 
of course, correspond with that of your 
own pile). While they are being collected, 
you take the opportunity to slip the little 
cap over your prepared pile, which should 
be placed ready to hand behind some small 
object on the table, so as to be unseen by 
the spectators. Pressing the side of the 
cap, you lift the pile with it, and place the 
whole together in full view, in close prox- 
imity to the die. The required cents having 
been now collected, you beg all to observe 
that you place the leather cap (which the 
spectators suppose to be empty) fairly over 
the die. Taking the genuine coins in either 
hand, you pretend, by one or the other of 
the "passes", to transfer them to the other. 
Holding the hand which is now supposed 
to contain the coins immediately above the 
cap, you announce that they will at your 
command pass under the cap, from which 
the die will disappear to make room for 
them. Saying, "One, two, three! Pass!" 
you open your hand, and show that the 
coins have vanished; and then, lifting up 
the cap by the button, you show the hol- 
low pile, covering the die and appearing to 
be the genuine coins. Once more covering 
the pile with the cap, you announce that 
you will again extract the coins, and re- 
place the die ; and to make the trick still 
more extraordinary, you will this time pass 



CLEVER TRICKS 201 

the coins right through the table. Placing 
the hand which holds the genuine coins 
beneath the table, and once more saying, 
''One, two, three ! Pass !" you chink the 
coins, and, bringing them up, place them 
on the table. Again picking up the cap, 
but this time pressing its sides, you lift 
up the hollow pile with it and disclose 
the die. Quickly transferring the cap, 
without the pile, to the other hand, you 
place it on the table, to bear the brunt of 
examination, while you get rid of the pre- 
pared coins. 

THE PEPPER-BOX, FOR VANISHING MONEY 

This is a small tin box, of the pepper- 
box or flour-dredger shape, standing three 
to four inches high. The "box" portion 
(as distinguished from the lid) is made 
double, consisting of two tin tubes sliding 
the one within the other, the bottom being 
soldered to the inner one only. By pulling 
the bottom downward, therefore, you draw 
down with it the inner tube, telescope fash- 
ion. By so doing you bring into view a 
slit or opening at one side of the inner 
tube, level with the bottom, and of such 
a size as to let a half-dollar pass through 
it easily. The Hd is also specially pre- 
pared. It has an inner or false top, and 
between the true and false top a loose 



902 CLEVER TRICKS 

bit of tin is introduced which rattles when 
the box is shaken, unless you at the same 
time press a little point of wire projecting 
from one of the holes at the top, and 
so render it, for the time being silent. The 
box is first exhibited with the inner tube 
pushed up into its place, and the opening 
thereby concealed. A marked coin is bor- 
rowed, but either before or after the coin 
is placed therein, as may best suit his pur- 
pose, the performer secretly draws out the 
inner tube a quarter of an inch or so, 
thus allowing the coin to slip through into 
his hand. As he places the box on the 
table, a very slight pressure suffices to 
force the tube up again into its original 
position, and close the opening. Having 
made the necessary disposition of the coin, 
the performer takes up the box and shakes 
it, to show (apparently) that the coin is 
still there, pressing on the little point above 
mentioned when he desires it to appear that 
it has departed, and immediately opening 
the box to show that it is empty. The 
pepper-box will not bear minute inspection, 
and is in this particular inferior to the 
rattle box. 

A NEST OF BOXES 

This consists of half a dozen circular 
wooden boxes, one within the other, the 



CLEVER TRICKS 203 

outer box having much the appearance, but 
being nearly double the size, of an ordinary- 
tooth-powder box, and the smallest being 
just large enough to contain a quarter. The 
series is so accurately made that, by ar- 
ranging the boxes in due order one within 
the other, and the lids in like manner, you 
may, by simply putting on all the lids to- 
gether, close all the boxes at once, though 
they can only be opened one by one. 

These are placed, the boxes together and 
the lids together, anywhere so as to be just 
out of sight of the audience. If on your 
table, they may be hidden by any more 
bulky article. Having secretly obtained 
possession, by either of the means before 
described, of a coin which is ostensibly de- 
posited in some other piece of apparatus, 
you seize your opportunity to drop it into 
the innermost box, and to put on the uni- 
ted lids. You then bring forward the nest 
of boxes (which the spectators naturally 
take to be one box only), and announce 
that the twenty-five cent piece will at your 
command pass from the place in which it 
has been deposited into the box which you 
hold in your hand, and which you forth- 
with deliver to one of the audience for safe 
keeping. Touching both articles with the 
mystic wand, you invite inspection of the 
first to show that the money has departed, 
and then of the box wherein it is to be 



304, CLEVER TRICKS 

found. The holder opens the box, and finds 
another, and then another, and in the in- 
nermost of all, the marked coin. Seeing 
how long the several boxes have taken to 
open, the spectators naturally infer that 
they must take as long to close, and (apart 
from the other mysteries of the trick) are 
utterly at a loss to imagine how, with the 
mere moment of time at your command, 
you could have managed to insert the coin, 
and close so many boxes. If you desire 
to use the nest for a coin larger than a 
quarter, you can make it available for that 
purpose by removing beforehand the small- 
est box. 

THE BALL OF BERLIN WOOL 

An easy and effective mode of termina- 
ting a money trick is to pass the marked 
coin into the center of a large ball of Berlin 
wool or worsted, the whole of which has 
to be unwound before the coin can be 
reached. The modus operandi, though per- 
plexing to the uninitiated, is absurdly sim- 
ple when the secret is revealed. The only 
apparatus necessary over and above the 
wool (of which you must have enough for 
a good-sized ball), is a flat tin tube, three 
to four inches in length, and just large 
enough to allow a quarter or half-dollar 
(whichever you intend to use for the trick) 



CLEVER TRICKS 205 

to slip through it easily. You prepare for 
the trick by winding the wool on one end 
of the tube^ in such manner that when the 
whole is wound in a ball, an inch or so 
of the tube may project from it. This 
you place in your pocket, or anywhere 
out of sight of the audience. You com- 
mence the trick by requesting some one to 
mark a coin, which you forthwith exchange 
by one or the other of the means already 
described, for a substitute of your own, and 
leave the latter in the possession or in view 
of the spectators, while you retire to fetch 
the ball of wool, or simply take it from 
your pocket. Before producing it, you drop 
the genuine coin down the tube into the 
center of the ball, and withdraw the tube 
giving the ball a squeeze to remove all 
trace of an opening. You then bring it 
forward, and place it in a glass goblet or 
tumbler, which you hand to a spectator to 
hold. Taking the substitute coin, you an- 
nounce that you will make it pass invisibly 
into the very center of the ball of wool, 
which you accordingly pretend to do, get- 
ting rid of it by means of one or other of 
the "passes" already described. You then 
request a second spectator to take the loose 
end of the wool, and to unwind the ball, 
which, when he has done, the coin falls out 
into the goblet. 

The only drawback to the trick is the 



206 CLEVER TRICKS 

tediousness of unwinding. To obviate this, 
some performers use a wheel made for the 
purpose, which materially shortens the 
length of the operation. 



CHAPTER XXVII 

SLEIGHT OF HAND 
TO BALANCE AN EGG 

Lay a looking glass upon an even table; 
take a fresh egg, and shake it for some 
time, so that the yolk may be broken and 
mixed up with the white. You may then 
balance it on its point, and make it stand 
on the glass. This it would be impossible 
to do if the egg was in its natural state. 

THE juggler's LUNCH 

Pare some large apples that are rather 
of a yellow tint; cut several pieces out of 
them, in the shape of a candle-end, round, 
of course, at the bottom, and square at the 
top; in fact, as much as possible like a 
candle that has burnt down within an inch 
or so. Then, cut some slips out of the in- 
sides of sweet almonds, fashion them as 
much in the shape of spermaceti wicks as 
you can, stick t^em into your mock can- 
207 



208 SLEIGHT-OF-HAND 

dies, light them for an instant, so as to 
make their tops black, blow them out again, 
and they are ready for use. When you pro- 
duce them, light them (the almond will 
readily take fire, and flame for a few mo- 
ments), put them into your mouth, chew 
and swallow them one after another. 

RING AND RIBBON 

Select two pieces of ribbon, alike in 
length, breadth, and color ; double each sep- 
arately, so that the ends meet; then tie 
them together neatly, with a bit of silk of 
their own color, by the middle, or crease 
made in doubling them. This must all be 
done in advance. When you are going to 
exhibit this trick, pass some rings on the 
doubled ribbons, and give the two ends of 
one ribbon to one person to hold, and the 
two ends of the other to another. Do not 
let them pull hard, or the silk will break, 
and your trick be discovered by the rings 
falling on the ground on account of the 
separation of the ribbons. Request the two 
persons to approach each other, and take 
one end from each of them, and without 
their perceiving it, return to each of them 
the end which the other had previously 
held. By now giving the rings, which ap- 
peared strung on the ribbon, a slight pull, 



SLEIGHT-OF-HAND 209 

you may break the silk, and they will fall 
into your hand. 

THE CHANGING BALL TRICK 

Take a ball in each hand, and stretch 
your hands as far as you can, one from the 
other: then state that you will contrive to 
m^ake both the balls come into either hand, 
without bringing the hands near each other. 
If any one dispute your power of doing 
this, you have no more to do than to lay 
one ball down upon the table, turn your- 
self, and take it up with your other hand. 
Thus both the balls will be in one of your 
hands, without their approaching each 
other. 

THE SENSITIVE GOBLET 

To fill a glass with water, so that no 
one may touch it without spilling all the 
water. Fill a common glass or goblet with 
water, and place upon it a bit of paper, so 
as to cover the water and edge of the glass ; 
put the palm of your hand on the paper, 
and taking hold of the glass with the other, 
suddenly invert it on a very smooth table, 
and gently draw out the paper; the water 
will remain suspended in the glass, and it 
will be impossible to move the glass with- 
out spilling all the water. 



210 SLEIOHT-OF-HAND 



TO LIGHT A CANDLE BY SMOKE 

When a candle is burnt so long as to 
leave a tolerably large wick, blow it out; a 
dense smoke, which is composed of hydro- 
gen and carbon, will immediately rise. 
Then, if another candle, or lighted taper, 
be applied to the utmost verge of this 
smoke, a very strange phenomenon will take 
place. The flame of the lio^hted candle will 
be conveyed to that just blown out, as if 
it were borne on a cloud, or, rather, it will 
seem like a mimic flash of lightning pro- 
ceeding at a slow rate. 

THE MAGIC RE-ILLUMINATION 

After having exhibited the trick of light- 
ing a candle by smoke, privately put a bit 
of paper between your fingers, and retire 
to one corner of the room with a single 
candle, and pass the hand in which you 
hold the paper several times slowly over 
the candle until the paper takes fire; then 
immediately blow the candle out, and pres- 
ently pass your hand over the snuff and 
relight it with the paper. You may then 
crumple the paper, at the same time ex- 
tinguishing the flame, by squeezing it sud- 
denly, without burning yourself. If this 
trick be performed dextrously, it is a very 



SLEIGHT-OF-HAND 211 

good one. It is not necessary for the per- 
formance of this trick that all the other 
lights in the room should be extinguished; 
in fact the trick is more liable to discovery 
in a dark room, than in one where the can- 
dles are burning, on account of the light 
thrown out by the paper while it is burn- 
ing, previous to the re-illumination. 

THE MOVING BALL 

Roll Up a piece of paper, or other light 
substance, and privately put into it any 
small insect, such as a lady-bird, or beetle; 
then, as the creature will naturally en- 
deavor to free itself from captivity, it will 
move its covering toward the edge of the 
table, and when it comes there, will imme- 
diately return, for fear of falling; and thus, 
by moving backward and forward, will ex- 
cite much diversion to those who are ig- 
norant of the cause. 

THE PAPER FURNACE 

Enclose a bullet in paper, as smoothly 
as possible, and suspend it above the flame 
of a lamp or candle; you will soon see it 
melt and fall, drop by drop, through a hole 
which it will make in the paper; but the 
paper, except the hole mentioned, will not 
be burnt. The art of performing this trick 



Q12 8LEIGHT-0F-HAND 

consists in using a smooth round bullet, and 
enclosing it in the paper with but few folds 
or uneven places. 

STORM AND CALM 

Pour water into a glass until it is nearly 
three parts full; then almost fill it up with 
oil; but be sure to leave a little space be- 
tween the oil and the top of the glass. Tic 
a bit of string round the glass^ and faster 
the two ends of another piece of string to 
it, one on each side, so that, when you take 
hold of the middle of it to lift up the glass, 
it may be about a foot from your hand. 
Now swing the glass to and fro, and the 
oil will be smooth and unruffled, while the 
surface of the water beneath it will be vio- 
lently agitated. 



THE END, 



Il 



DEC 14 1910 



One copy del. to Cat. Div. 



i4 191y 



020 237 098 6 







